


I Hope You Dance

by LoversSpit400



Category: Chicago Med
Genre: Other, Single Parents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-06
Updated: 2019-10-26
Packaged: 2020-01-05 12:32:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 24,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18366083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LoversSpit400/pseuds/LoversSpit400
Summary: Will Halstead's life is turned upside down when part of his life in New York comes back to him, and now he has to step up to mend fences and build a relationship with a 8 years old girl.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I always wanted to see a story where Will is a single parent, but I never found one, so I decided to write it. Hope you all enjoy it!

It was late night at Chicago. The moon were already high up in the sky, lighting up the streets and the people that were making their ways back home.  
Will had just finished his shift in the E.D. and was making his way to his car. It was a long and hard day. He had watched Natalie smile and be happy with Philip in front of him for what felt like an eternity as the hole in his chest grew bigger and bigger each passing minute.  
Maggie told him to work, maybe that’s how he was supposed to get over her, burying himself into work and being the best doctor he could be. So he did it. He worked nearly every second of his shift today and while doing it, now that his body finally stopped it really looked like a bad idea.  
So he walked into the car and turned it on, making his way out of the Hospital’s parking lot. He was in a headlight when his phone started buzzing. It was an unknown number with New York area code.  
“Hello?” Will said with a skeptical voice.  
“Hello, is it Mr. William Halstead?” A lady with a politely soft voice spoke on the other side of the line.  
“Yes, it’s.”  
“Hi, I apologize for calling so late at night, but it's an emergency.”  
Will’s heart started to race on his chest, anxiety building up to him.  
“My name is Diana and I’m a social worker from New York Presbyterian Hospital and we would like to talk to you about Mila Wilson.”  
In that moment Will’s heart stopped. He decided to pull over, not risking a car accident. Mila Wilson. Mila was his friend when he lived in New York.  
He met her in a bar through a few mutual friends, they started talking and suddenly they were best friends. She had beautiful brown hair with the dyed blond tips and gorgeous blue eyes, her hair was perfectly lined and she wore a fringe with a headband that made her look like she was straight out a 70’s movie, but it was her laugh that made Will be interested in her.  
Her laugh could light a whole room, and just the sound of it made him already feel better. She was easy to talk to and for some reason they felt attracted to each other.  
She asked him about his tattoo and he glady explained to her while she took me out to dance. They spended the whole night drinking and dancing ‘til it was almost morning. In the morning he woke up with a note on his door with a joke they had made the night before and simple as that he got a best friend.  
They would spend the whole day texting each other about the lamest things and whenever they could, they’d meet and laugh and cry at each other’s shoulders.  
It was on one party at the local bar, after Will just got the news that his mother health was deteriorating that they kissed for the first time. Will was sad and heartbroken, he wanted to feel loved and in touch with someone’s else, he wanted to feel alive. And she did that for him. They kissed and hugged at the bar counter.  
So he took her home and his grief made him crave more and more of her. They spend the night together and at the end of it he was holding her in his arms ‘til the morning light came up and she woke up, grabbed her clothes from his bedroom floor, looked at herself in the mirror and left the room.  
Maybe they should had talked about it, but they just pretended that it never happened and soon the distance between them grew larger and larger ‘til they became strangers as Mila went to International Health Program at Uganda and Will went to Sudan.  
Now, almost ten years after these facts her name was being brought up into his life again. He noticed that he was silent for too long and he should answer Diana.  
“Yeah. I’m sorry. What is this about?”  
“There’s any possibility for you to come to attend Chicago’s Social Service early thing in the morning?”  
“Can’t you talk what is this about by the phone?”  
“I would rather not to. It’s a serious matter that shouldn’t be treated by a phone call. Arriving there you can talk to Chloe, she already knows what this is about and Will explain everything to you. Do you understand?”  
He nodded ‘til he thought that she couldn’t see him. “Yeah, I’ll let my boss know.”  
“Thank you so much. Have a good night.”  
“Hey, can you at least explain?”  
“Sir, tomorrow morning Chloe will explain everything to you, better than a phone call ever could. Goodnight.”  
She finished the call first, leaving him to his thoughts.  
When he got home he couldn’t even think about anything else. He tried to call his old friends and no one could even guess what that was about. Mila vanished from their existence, so he decided to sleep, thinking that like this the morning would come faster. 

At 8 a.m. he was already at the Social Service waiting for Chloe. She was a lady in her late 40s, with short hair, deep hazel eyes and a condescending smile. He met her in her office, she was already sitting in armchair and shook his hand, nodding him to sit in a place besides her.  
“Hello, Mrs. Halstead. You are sure punctual.”  
“I’m really curious about what it’s about.”  
“Well, I imagine you know who Mila Wilson is.” He nodded. “ Well, but I think that you don’t know who Isabella Wilson is.”  
“Excuse me.”  
“Isabella is a beautiful 8 years old girl, Mila’s daughter. Unfortunately, Mila was diagnosed with a rare heart problem that is causing an complete organ failure. A week ago she signed a DNR and since then her state have deteriorated.”  
Will was shocked by all of it, even though it was such a long time ago he still had a tenderness for her, and to know that someone he cared was suffering caused him pain.  
“I’m so sorry, but I can’t see how can I help.”  
“Will, there’s no easy way to say this, but the New York Social Service have reasons to believe that Isabella is your daughter.’  
“What?” Was all he could say.


	2. Begin the Begin

Will came out of the Social Worker’s officer still in shock. The words spoken were still ringing in his ear “No other relatives”. “She’s living with Mila’s friend, but she can’t stay like this forever.” as a broken record. Rooms, people and time passed him by and he didn't noticed. 

“Oh my God…” Was all he could say as he sat in the waiting room, his face white as a sheet, but hid into his hand. Not really knowing what to do or what was his next step, he took his phone out of his pocket and dialed the only person that could help him. Two rings later, he heard Jay’s voice coming out of the speakers. “Hey. What’s up?”

Will's mind went blank, he couldn't formulate any words or think about anything else to say. So he just sat in there, phone in his ear, breathing hard. 

“Will, are you okay?” Jay's voice was worried now and Will decided that was no right way of explaining the situation. 

“I have a daughter.”

The line went silent for a minute and everyone digested the information for a while. That was the first time Will said that out loud and the weight of the sentence alone could crush him. 

“You have what?” Even though they've been through a lot, Jay never sounded more confused than right now. 

“I’m- I’m not sure. Please can I talk to you in person? Please, I’m going to lose my mind.”

“Meet me in the station.”

So Will walked out and grabbed his car, driving in auto pilot and probably ran over a few red lights and 20 minutes later Will pulling over the station and he saw that Jay was already waiting for him at front door. Will could thank him only cause he didn't ask any question immediately, Jay just took him to the coffee area and closed the door behind him as the ginger almost collapse into a chair.

“Explain.” Jay demanded. 

As if he was holding the words and was about to explode, Will let it all out.

“8 years ago I had a one night thing with a friend at College. She vanished after that. However, apparently she was pregnant and had baby girl, Isabella. Last night I received a call, I just found out that the girl, Mila, is dying, and the kid has no one. Mila told the social worker I was the father and they reached, asking what I wanted to do. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.”

Jay was in shock. Mouth hanging open and he sat in the chair in front of Will's. 

“Oh my God…Where is the mom? Mila? Have you tried to reach to her?”

“She’s in New York. I can’t drop everything and go to New York, but I can’t-“ Will was starting to panic again. 

“Are you sure she’s yours? I mean... After all those years?”

Will shook his head.

“Then you have to get a DNA test first. Then you decide what to do.”

Will nodded.

“I can’t be a father. I can barely take care of myself" How am I going to take care of an 8 years old girl?”

Will's eyes were pleading for some kind of comfort and safety. 

 

“If it comes to that. We’ll figure together, you hear me?” Jay did his best to give it to him. 

They both got up and Jay opened his arms, hugging wasn't something that they did, but Jay felt like this moment needed one. He came closer to Will and his brother let himself relax and embrace his brother's comfort. 

“Now go talk to Goodwin and tell her that you need to go to New York, as fast as you can.” The cop demanded and that was what Will did.

Goodwin was confused and thoughtful at first, but eventually moved Will’s vacations to the next day. It was going to be a huge problem with the board but she knew Will could not do a good job in this condition. He thanked her, leaving the hospital without talking to anyone, only staring at Natalie for a moment as crossing to door to make his way home to buy planes tickets to New York.

A day later he arrived at J.F.K. Airport, got into a Taxi and went straight to the Hospital Mila was in. On his way, he was so lost in thoughts that he didn’t even noticed how New York was still the same, how some streets had his history written all over them. Fear, anxiety, curiosity, sadness, all these things were mixing inside him and about to explode making it all a big blur surrounding him.

When he finally arrived at the hospital, he went to the balcony and talked to the secretary.

“Hi, my name is William Halstead; I’m here to talk to Diana.”

A few minutes later Diana came in. She was in her mid-30, long dyed red hair on a ponytail, wearing a blue dress and a welcoming smile on her face.

“Mrs. Halstead, glad to meet you.”

“Me too.”

“Please follow me.”

He did ‘til they walked into a room, different from the one in Chicago, this one had a table where Diana sat behind.

“I’m sure you already know all the facts, Mr. Halstead.”

He nodded. “Just to be sure. I would like a DNA test on Isabella.” He spoke, trying his best not to look like a jerk. 

“We already would do that, so no problem. I just want to say, I am impressed that you came. Most of the parents we contact would not do it. “

“I just want to clarify it all.”

“So I think you want to talk to Mila.”

That was it. It looked like someone stabbed him right into his heart, but he nodded anyway.

Diana explained the situation to him and guided him to another part of the hospital. On the apartment 403 she stopped, told him to wait and walked in first. After a few minutes she walked out and told him to come inside.

Crossing the door was one of the most underwhelming things he ever experience. Mila was older, her long hair was now short, she looked tired and had big circles around her eyes. She was skinner than she should be and her chest had pacing wires in it.

“Hi, Will.” She said in a weak voice.

“Hey, Mila” He said sitting on the edge of the bed.

“I know…I’ve seen better days…” Her voice was weak but he could notice that she was trying to make a joke, but he was getting tired. 

“Why you went away?” He was impatient.

“I’m thinking you are here ‘cause you know.”

He breathed, trying to push his anxiety aside. 

“Please, just explain your side of the story to me. Please.”

She took a deep breath.

“After that night I thought…Will, I felt like you used me. I felt dirty…I don’t how to explain it. I thought that you only did that because you were drunk, sad and needy. And I always had a crush on you so I took advantage of it too. Sometimes I thought of the two of us, and that night was not how I wanted it.” She told him between breathes, she was exhausted at the end of it.

Will went and put an Oxygen mask on her face. She took a few minutes to catch her breath.

“When did you find out you were pregnant?” Will asked, in a soft tone, not wanting to stress her out even more.

“Two days before we left to Human Care.”

Will breathed heavily.

“She’s a lovely and amazing girl.” She said with a smile behind the mask. “She likes hiking, and Paw Patrol. She wants to be a doctor too.” She pointed at her cellphone and he went and grabbed it.

Mila showed him pictures of Isabella. She was a beautiful young girl indeed. She had his red hair, which was straight like her mother’s. She also had Mila’s blue eyes. Mila showed him a video of Isabella on Coney’s Island.

She was riding the carrousel and waving every time she would pass in front of her mom. She had huge smile on her face, a smile like his.

After that all the fear was replaced with something new, he didn’t know what yet. But he smiled seeing every picture of Isabella.

“She’s mine, right?”

“Yes.”  
They were in silence for minutes.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”

“You should’ve have…God, did you even tell her about me?”

“She knows her dad is a doctor too. And that he’s far away but someday he will meet her.”

“Will, I don’t have much time left. Please, take care of Bella. She doesn’t have anyone but me, I can’t leave her alone.” She was crying now and that broke Will's heart in two. “This is the worst part of it…Leaving her…”

Will took her hand into hers, looked her in the eyes. “I promise you I’ll give her my best.”

She cried a little bit more and closed her eyes and fell asleep.

Will sat on a chair beside her bed and gave his brother all the details. In the end, he asked Jay to look for kid’s furniture. He would come back to Chicago with a little girl.


	3. Nice to meet you

It was on the next day that Will and Mila decided it was time for Isabella to meet him. The social worker thought it would be better if they met each other at her officer, but Mila insisted that it took place in her Hospital’s room. Will thought it was probably the worst place to tell a little girl a strange man was her father, but Mila wanted to be there for her child, so he accept it.

Will arrived early than they planned, wearing his best clothes, but still in a casual look and Mila laughed at how nervous he looked. He was sweating and his legs couldn’t stay till. “She’s going to love you!” Mila said many between coughs.

It was 3:30p.m. when the Social Worker opened the door and a beautiful girl, with red hair and blue eyes walked in. She was wearing a flower blue dress with blue shoes, obviously she had prepared herself for the encounter.

Will and Isabella took deep breaths while looking at each other, unsure what to say at each other, anxiety building. Will remembered that he was the adult in the situation.

“Hello, Isabella. My name is Will.”

She nodded and extended her hand.

“Nice to meet you.”

He shook her hand, kinda laughing that their first encounter began with a hand shake.

Mila decided that she had to be the one to take the lead, so she called Isabella to sit next to her in the bed, when the girls snuggled herself into her, she started:

“My love, you know how I talked about your father yesterday? So here he is, he came all the way from Chicago just to meet you.”

Isabella nodded, looking at the ground.

“So, you want to know anything about me?” Will asked, his heart pounding so loud he thought anyone could listen to it.

“Are you going to live in New York?” Isabella asked, almost in a whisper.

Will’s heart stopped. He looked at Mila for help and she mouthed “be honest”.

“No, I’m afraid not. I’m a doctor at Chicago Med, a hospital...And I can’t leave…” He was trying to find the words to justify his answer, feeling like he just gave her the wrong one.

Isabella nodded at ground again.

“I heard you want to be a doctor too, is that right?”

She nodded.

“What kinda of doctor?”

She stood silent.

Mila holded her closer and said in her ear “He asked you a question, answer baby”.

“Kid’s doctor, I think.”

“That’s great. I take care of a lot of kids where I work. Maybe I can take you there to see it, would you like to?”

She nodded again.

Will was getting frustrated, he knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but damn, it was almost impossible to keep the conversation going. He looked at Mila for help and she just motion him to keep going.

“So, were you at school?”

She nodded.

“Which grade are you in?”

“3rd.”

“Did you learn anything new today?”

For the first time, she looked at Mila like she was asking for permission to speak to Will more than two words.

“I learned that the stars are always in the sky, even during the day. But the sun light is so strong that we can’t see them.”

She only looked at Will by the end of the sentence.

“Wow. That’s really cool! So, if we go outside now there’s stars above us?”

She nodded looking at Will. Victory, Will thought.

“I also found out that I’m good in basketball. I score a basket.”

“Really? I like to play basketball, maybe we could play together someday.”

“But you’re taller than me.”

“Being tall doesn’t mean anything, I’m really bad at it-”

The conversation was cut by Mila’s going unconscious and the heart monitor next to the bed started to scream.

“Mom? Mom!” Isabella started to scream at her mom.

Nurses and doctors invaded the room and Will took Isabella on his arms and led her out of it. He closed the door behind him and hugged the crying girl closer to him.

“It’s okay. It’s okay.”

“I want my mom!”

“I know. Hey, I know.”

She hugged him harder and he rocket her in the hallway. Will thought about the DNR and how this was it. He now was the one responsible for Isabella.

The doctor came out a couple of minutes later and just said “I’m sorry” to Will.

Isabella was crying non-stop and it broke Will’s heart. She sobbed and tightened her grip in Will’s neck. He stroked her hair ‘til he put her in to ground, looked at her in the eyes.

“Hey, look at me.”

She cried and wanted to go back to Will’s embrace, but he refuse and said;

“Do you remember how you told me about the stars? How they are always there, but we can’t see them?”

“Y-Yes.”

“That’s like your mom, right now. She will always be with you, always, but we can’t see her. But she’s there. Do you understand me?”

“Y-Yes.”

Now he took her back into his arms, and they stood there, sitting in the ground, Will holding the crying girl until she eventually fell asleep.


	4. Can't wait to leave this place

The service took place two days after the passing. Isabella spend the nights at Amanda’s, Mila’s friend, and the mornings with Will. He didn't really know how to handle the situation, but did his best trying to get to know her. He would ask her questions about her life, what she liked and what she didn't like, trying to take her mind away from things as much as he could. But all he got in return was small words, for now it was good enough. 

On that day, Will woke up early and brought a black tux. He drove in his rented car and picked Isabella and Amanda. Amanda was a tall blonde nurse with kind eyes and deep voice, she was the one organizing everything while Will was taking care of Isabella and words weren't enough to express how much gratitute he had for her. 

It was a couple of days, Bella had barely spoke a word since her mom passing and as she walked towards the car Will was in she had a poker face in her, no signs of tears in her eyes, she looked mad more than anything. Once she sat down on the backseat Will spoke to her, watching her by the mirror.

  
“Hey, Bella. Are you ready?”

  
The girl responded by looking at window. Amanda gave him an apologetic smile and he started the car and they drove in silent to the cemitery for about 30 minutes. Will would steal looks at his daughter whenever he could, but she remained staring at the window.

Once he parked, Bella was still in the backseat as if she didn't really noticed that they arrived yet. He sighed and opened her door, scaring her a little. He looked in her eyes and extended his hand, helping  her to get out of the car. When he made mention to let it go, she held it tighter and he got the message. Even in her silence she still needed someone in her team right now. 

  
So when they walked in, Will was holding his daughter’s hand as people crowded the girl, saying that they were sorry and that Mila was in a better place right now. Bella wouldn't respond to it, face still hard, looking foward as her hand held Will's. She still had not spoke a word or shed a single tear.

  
“You want to come closer?’ Will asked her once everyone was seated. 

  
“I’m fine.” She said so quiet that Will had a hard time listening to it.

He sighed. Thinking how right now he was a father and he needed to do what was the best for her. 

  
“Bella, if you don’t you will regret it, believe me. You didn’t have time to say goodbye, so go ahead. No one will judge you.” He gave her a tight smile and it took her a moment but she nodded and Will took her closer. Again he tried to give her some privacy, but she didn’t want to let go of his hand.

He watched as the girl just looked at her mom for minutes and didn’t say a word. Once she took a deep breath she looked at Will and said “I want to go.”

  
“We need to stay a while longer, ok? Then we can go home, maybe grab some ice cream after. What do you think?” He spoke in a soft voice. 

  
“I want to go away from this town. I don’t want to stay here anymore.” Her voice was raspy and filled with anger. 

  
Will took a deep breath, not really knowing what to do.

  
“We gonna talk about this later, ok?”

  
She nodded and then she went back to her silence. She kept like this during the whole service until the coffin were put in the ground.

  
Will couldn’t help but cry a little, his life had just changed in a week. A little girl’s life were ripped apart from her. So he felt like it was alright to cry. For him, for his daughter, for the whole situation.

  
As promised once the whole thing was done Amanda got into a taxi and Will drove with Isabella to City Hall Park. They sat in a bench in front of Jacob Wrey Fountain, all the time she was silent still.

  
“You know that I live in Chicago, right?” He spoke after a few minutes of silence. 

  
She nodded not looking at him.

  
He didn’t know how to start, so he decided to be honest and talk to her like a adult, not like she was a little kid, he thought that they were past of this point.

  
“I won’t lie to you. Moving to Chicago will be hard. It’s not like New York, you gonna have to go to a new school in the middle of the year. In the first month I’ll be there for you all the time, I promise, but eventually I’ll have to go back to work and I work in shifts so I won’t be there for a while.”He waited for her reaction to start to talk again, when she gave him nothing he continued. “But I promise you this. There’s a lot of people in Chicago that are willing to help you, us. Honestly, my brother already brought you a bed and is setting a room for you in my place right now. It probably won’t look good, because he’s really bad at this things, but he’s doing that with so much love… I have friends that will treat you like family. I have a dog too, and I’m praying you’re not allergic or scared of him. Bella, we gonna do this. I’m gonna be the best father I can be. But I need you to help me out too. I need you to talk to me, to be honest with me. Anything that bothers you, anything you want, I need to know, ok?”

She was silent for a while, but she gave him a little “Ok.” Still not looking at him. 

  
“Promise?” He asked her like a child would share a secret with another. 

  
“Promise.” She looked at him for the first time and then there was a moment of silence.

  
“When are we leaving?” She asked looking at him one more time. 

  
“I still need to figure things out with your school, but I think next week. Is it good for you?

  
“Yeah. Am I still going to be at Amanda’s?”

  
“For now, yes.”

The heavy silent fell on them again but Will could notice that the girl was gathering her thoughts together. 

  
“I don’t wanna to live there anymore.”

  
Will looked at her.

  
“I’m tired of living with her. She’s cool but it’s not a home…” She continued. 

  
Tears started to fell on her face for the first time that day and Will felt relief crashing in his body.

  
“Hey, that’s ok. Chicago is going to be your home too.”

He held her as she calmed down and told him in a strong voice “I can’t wait to leave this place.”

  
“Me too.”

She gave him a small smile.


	5. Flying

Will tightened Isabella’s seat belt in place. The plane was already full and the flight attendant were walking down the hall greeting people and telling them to “please, put your chair in a sitting position.” The flight was early in the morning 06:00 A.M., what made then wake up early in the then usual, although Will was pretty sure Isabella didn’t sleep at all.

  
In the previous night she had told Will that she never had travelled by plane and that Julio from school told her that the planes fall from the sky and when that happened everyone usually died, Will tried to assure her that planes were safe and only a few planes actually suffered accidents, but it didn't help much.

  
Isabella sat by the window, her hands holding on in the chair for her dear life, eyes shut and chest rising and falling fast once the turbines sound started to get louder.

  
“Hey, planes are safe. You don’t need to worry.”

  
“I don’t like it.” She told him, eyes still closed shut. 

  
“I know, but you don’t need to be scared.”

  
_“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome onboard Flight 4B7 with service from New York to Chicago…”_

As the pilot spoke, Isabella’s hold got stronger in the chair and her eyes were even more shut and Will got surprised that it was even possible. The plane wasn’t even off the ground and the girl were already terrified. Will couldn’t keep his eyes off her, not knowing what to do and feeling useless.

  
When the plane actually left the ground, Isabella gave a little scream.

  
“Hey, it’s ok. It’s ok. Don’t be scared,” He quickly comforted the girl

  
“My ears are funny.” She said opening her mouth, trying to ease the pression.

  
“It’s the pressure. Do like this.” He said as he capped his nose and exhaled deeply.

  
She followed him.

  
“Better?”

  
She nodded. Her attention went back to the window. Her eyes widened as she saw New York from above for the first time. It’s was the first time Will saw her smile, truly smile and a fluff feeling took over his chest.

  
“Look at the buildings!” She pointed them for Will. “They look so small!”

  
Will looked at her happiness and thought how just a second ago she was terrified, now she was wonderstruck looking down at the window, not carrying that she was so far up the ground that New York looked small.

  
He tried to keep her happy during the whole travel, telling her little facts he knew about flying and the towns they were flying over.

  
“Do you travel a lot?” she asked him one the plane was above the clouds and there weren't really much to see.

  
“Not as much as I liked to. But we can change that, what do you think?”

  
“Not by plane.”

  
Will let out a little laugh and  she went back to look at the window, appreciating the clouds and letting out a yawn.

  
“Why don’t you try to sleep a little?”

  
She nodded and made herself comfortable. Less than a minute she was out.

  
_“Ladies and gentlemen, as we start our descent, please make sure your seat backs and tray table are in their full upright position…”_

  
Will cursed under his breath. It was barely five minutes since Isabella fell asleep and he had to wake her up. He thought about letting her sleep, but the thought of her waking up during the descent and freaking out was worst so he decided to let her sleep the longer he could.

  
Ten minutes later the pilot announced that the plane had been cleared to land and that was Will’s cue.

  
“Bella wake up. We’re about to land.”

  
She opened her eyes, blinked a few times and took her surroundings as she putted herself back into her usual position. Eyes shut, hands holding the seat’s for her dear life again.

  
“It’s just like the take off. Probably we will jump a little bit, but it’s normal.”

  
She nodded.

  
When the plane touched the ground everyone jumped a little from the seats, and one more time Isabella screamed.

  
“It’s ok. We landed. We are fine.”

  
She opened her eyes and looked out of the window.

  
“Welcome to Chicago.” Will said more nervous then he would like to. 

  
She gave Will a nervous smile as well. 


	6. The place we were made

While the plane’s door didn’t open, Will grabbed his and Isabella’s handbags as he stood in the line of people waiting to get out and she stood in her seat watching him. When the doors finally opened, he took Isabella’s hand and they made their way out of the plane, passing through a long hallway.

  
“Hey, my brother came to pick us up. His name is Jay, ok? I think you’re going to like him,”

  
She nodded but looked like something was bothering her as she looked at the walls, the roof and everything around her.

  
“Bella, honesty remember?”

  
She was thoughtful for a minute.

  
“Do I have to call him uncle?”

The question came full of uncertaintly. Small like she knew she was giving the wrong answer to a teacher in front of the whole class. 

  
“No. Just call him whatever you want, I think Jay is good.”

  
That was the moment that he noticed Isabella’s never called him anything. Not even Will. She always used _you_ to refer to him, avoid anything that would make her call him names like Dad or Will. 

  
“Bella.” The words came out of his mouth. “You also don’t need to call me dad. I understand, ok? Just call me Will if it’s good for you.”

  
“Ok.” She let out a breath. 

  
They went to get their other’s luggage. Will had only a bag while Isabella had two. One medium and one large that they had brought two days prior flying to Chicago, that kept Isabella books, clothes, dolls and memories that needed to fit in two suitcases and travel with her to another town. Will, Isabella and Amanda spended two day and a three nights packing her things.

  
Will couldn’t help but notice the tears she had when doing so, specially when something made her remember her mom. A T-Shirt, a photograph, little things that once were nothing and now were all the little girl had from her mom. Will assure her that was okay to be sad and to cry about it, but she tried to put a brave face, not allowing Will to see her sadness.

  
He grabbed the luggage when they passed by him and asked Isabella to grab a luggage cart to help him carry them, when she did so, Will grabbed his phone and called Jay.

  
“Hey, we are here. Can’t see you.”

  
“Walk out and I’m at your left.” Jay instructed him, his voice sounded normal, contrasting with the nervous sound that was coming out Will. 

  
When Isabella returned, he set the bags in place and did as instructed, still in phone with Jay.

  
“Damn, she looks like you.” Jay sounded surprised now although his face was didn't let it show. 

  
“Yeah, I know.”

  
He made his way to Jay, always making sure Isabella was following him.

  
“Hey, man. This is Isabella. Bella, this is my brother, Jay!”

Jay went down to her high.

  
“It’s really nice to meet you, Isabella” he extended his hand and she shook his hand.

“It’s nice to meet you too.”

  
Will winked at her, as if he was approving everything and she smiled at him.

  
“Ok, let’s get moving! Bella didn’t sleep at all.”

  
Jay guided them to where his truck was parked, he opened the doors, Isabella tried to help them with the bags, but she was still too small, but both of the appreciated the effort. Setting the bags in place, they walked in, Isabella on the backseat of the truck. She putted her seatbelt on and started to look out of the window, seeing Chicago for the first time.

  
“So...Isabella, I heard it was your first time in the plane, how was that?” Jay asked looking at her through the rearview mirror.

  
“I didn’t like the take off and the landing, but was cool to see everything from above.” She said, eyes not leaving the window. 

  
“That’s nice. Well, I set up a bedroom for you, hope you like it.”

  
“Thank you very much.” She said, now looking at him. 

  
“She’s so polite and educated. Are you sure she’s yours?” Jay said in a loud whisper. 

  
Will looked at him with a mad face, he just laughed.

  
Jay parked in front of Will’s home and was the first one to get out of the car to grab the bags. Will looked at Isabella and she was absorbing it all.

The apartmant complex wasn’t a huge mansion, but was good and a place she could call home in a while, he hoped. Making his way off the car and into the front door, he noticed that she took a deep breath before jumping out of the truck.

  
When the apartment door was finally open, Kol came out running, making a party for his owner. He jumped into him, barked, spinned what made Isabella a little scared of him, but Will encouraged her to pet him, soon she was smiling at the dog.

  
Jay went inside carrying the bigger luggage, placing it on Will’s living room.

  
“Isabella! Come here! Check your room.”

  
Bella slowly walked into the apartment. She felt like she was trespassing into someone’s home. She wanted to run away and go back to New York, then she remembered she didn’t have a home there too. Will was trying his best to be a good father, they made promises to each other and she planned to keep hers.

  
So she followed Jay’s voice and walked into a white room with a single red painted wall, with a single bed close to the right wall. Below the window there was a simple white desk with chair. On the other side of the room was a wardrobe. Everything was simple and neutral, nothing with glitter and unicorns. Isabella was really glad for that.

  
“Did you like it?” Jay asked her hopeful.

  
“A lot, thank you for that.”

  
She gave him a smile and Jay felt like as if he had accomplished a great mission.

  
Will walked into the room and was clearly let down by it. He stared at Jay “Dude. Really? I told you to buy a pink bed!”

  
“I like this white one.” Isabella was quick at Jay’s defense, speaking before he could even open his mouth. Jay pointed at his niece, arching his eyebrows and giving a victorious smile showing he was right.

  
Will sighed.

  
“Bella, how about you grab some sleep, while I unpack?”

  
She nodded and made her way to the bed.

  
“Going to be at the living room if you need anything.”

  
“Thank you!”

  
She laid on the bed and covered herself with blankets.

  
Making their way to the living room Jay sat on the couch while Will was on the floor opening the luggage

.  
“She seems like a nice kid.” Jay said.

  
“She is. Really. She’s a lot mature for her age and is trying her best to fit in. I’m going to find a kid psychologist though.”

  
“Sounds good. It isn’t going to be easy.”

  
“I know”

  
They were in silence for a while.

  
“When you gonna to tell people about her?” Jay asked.

  
“When she gets settled. I’m thinking you and me are already too much for her.”

  
Jay nodded.

  
“Thought about the school yet?”

  
“No…” Will ran his hands though his face. “There’s so many things! God! I have to find her a school, maybe get her into some sports. Get a sitter when I’m back to work...Oh my God!”

  
“Calm down. We’re gonna make this work! Believe me.”

  
Will finished unpacking by lunch time. He checked Bella and she was still asleep, so he took his time to look at her and her little details. The flecks in her cheeks, her little hands hugging the pillow. He decided to let her sleep and order something for them to lunch.

  
When Isabella woke up, her brain took a while to remember where she was. The drive from the airport to Will’s home was a blur, she was so tired that she could barely function.

  
Now she took time to pay attention at her bedroom, how her bed was soft and the lamp on the desk make it look like a officer desk. She could probably put some posters on the walls and if she asked she was sure Will was going to put a shelf, but it was a good. She liked it here but there were still a hole in her chest.

  
Something was missing, she knew what it was, but she could never get it.

  
She decided she needed to walk out of the room. Slowly made her way to the kitchen and found Will’s already finishing his lunch, his eyes widened when he saw her: “Bella! I’m so sorry, I was really hungry and didn’t know if you were…”

“It’s okay. Don’t worry.”

“So...I brought you some lasagna.”

“Thank you very much.”

Will grabbed her a plate, showing her where she could find all the utensils. She sat on the table and started to eat.

Once again she had a look in her eye, like she wanted to tell him something, but couldn’t.

“Bella, we can’t make this work if you don’t talk to me. Okay?”

She nodded.

“Can we meet the town later?”

Will laughed.

“Of course! I was already planning that! There’s a dog park near by, we can take Kol there and then we see what else we do.”

She kept eating in silence.

“I go back to work in 15 days, we can do a lot meanwhile.”

“What am I going to do when you go back to work?”

“For starters tomorrow we can see a school for you. Then I was thinking you could play some sports...What do you think?”

“Cool.”

“Which sport?”

“Basketball?”

“Sounds good to me.”

When she finished eating, Will washed the dishes and noticed that it was already 4 p.m., when he was done. He grabbed his and Isabela’s coats and they made their way out of the door and into the city.


	7. First Day

Two weeks went by and it was Isabella’s first day at the new school. She didn’t catch any sleep, her mind spend the whole night wondering how it was going to be like. It was bad enough to be the new girl, but to be new girl in the middle of school year was even worst. Everyone already knew everyone even the new kids. People would like to know why she moved from New York, what would she tell them? What if nobody liked her? The questions were running in her head, making hard for her brain to shut down. 

  
It was close to 3 a.m. when Will walked into the room to check if she was sleeping. When she heard the door open she got up from the bed, sitting by it's side and looked at him.

  
“Hey. Can’t sleep?”

  
“Not really”

  
“Nervous about the first day?”

  
“I got butterflies in my stomach.”

  
“Yeah...I’m gonna be back at work tomorrow. I’m nervous too.”

  
“What if they don’t like me?” She asked Will in soft tone.

  
Will sat besides her in the bed. She came closer to him and he putted his arms around her. In the last few weeks they spend almost every minute of it together. Will took her to the park, to rides bike by the riverwalk, at night they would play cards and watch movies. It was like they were living in their little bubble for these weeks, getting to know each other and it felt good, but now reality was calling and the bubble had to be blown off and maybe no one was ready for that yet.

  
“Bella.” Will said while still holding her. “Tomorrow, I mean, later today, please, don’t try so hard to fit in. Be quiet if you want to, do what makes you comfortable. Do the best you can. I know it’s going to be hard, but remember that in the end of the day we will have each other, ok?”

  
She hugged him.

  
“Why are you nervous?” She asked him.

  
“Going back to work is going to be awkward and strange....”

  
“Yeah.”

They were in silence for a while.

“Can you sleep here?” She asked him.

“Thought you’d never ask.”

Will had a hard time fitting into the bed, but he made himself comfortable, Isabella cuddling him helped. Soon they both were asleep.

When the morning came, Will was the first to wake up. He gently putted Isabella off him and made his way to the kitchen. He started to make breakfast, he did pancakes and a juice. When he was about to wake Isabella up, the girl was already at her feet.

“Ready?”

“No.”

He laughed.

“Go take a shower! I made you breakfast!”

She threw herself at the bed again.

“Come on!! Bella, you can’t be late. I can’t be late! Come on!!”

She made her way to the bathroom and in seconds Will heard the shower running.

In half a hour Will was in his scrubs while Bella was with her school’s uniform, making their way to the car.

“Where do I work?” He asked as they were sitting in the car and Isabella rolled her eyes.

“Chicago Med.”

“What’s my name?”

“Will Halstead. E.D. Doctor.”

“If I’m not available who do you call?”

“Jay Halstead at Chicago Intelligence.”

Will looked at her before turning the engine on.

“It’s okay. We gonna be ok.”

She smiled.

When they arrived at the school door, Will took a deep breath hugged his daughter and she hugged him back.

“I love you, have a great day.” He said in her ear.

She gave him a nervous nod and made her way out of the car and into the school.

The hallways were full, kids from all over the ages were filling it. Some were running, some were talking in groups and she felt like everybody’s eyes were on her. Apparently she was the only one who didn’t know anyone, who didn’t fit in. Maybe nobody was looking at her and it was all in her mind. She wanted to be mad at Will for making her face this alone, but wouldn’t it be worst to have your dad with you in your first day? But she wanted him. He was the only person she knew in Chicago.

  
The bell rang and she opened her backpack, checking a piece of paper and seeing that she was supposed to be at classroom 17. When she found it, the feeling of having all eyes on her became true. It seems like everybody were staring at new girl with red hair.

  
“Hello! You must be Isabella!” The teacher said. She was a nice lady, not that old but in her late 30s. She was wearing a beautiful red dress, her hair in a ponytail. “Class say hi to Isabella! She’s our new friend!”

  
Isabella gave them a little smile and if she could she would bury herself into the ground.

  
“I’m Ana! Bella, why don’t you go sit there.” The teacher presented herself and pointed at the empty chair.

  
The room was big, the walls were decorated with colorful bulletin boards. The whole place were labeled with pictures and words. The students were divided into four groups of six students, three by each side. Bella sat in the middle table, in front of a girl with curly blond hair.

  
“Hi, my name is Maria! Nice to meet you Isabella.”

  
“Nice to meet you too.”

And simple as that, they became best friends. The two girls spend the whole break talking to each other and Maria couldn’t believe that Isabella’s hair was actually red, what made Isabella laugh. They did their reading activities and math together, although she was back a little, Bella decided to put an extra effort to try to catch on the other kids.

In a blink school was over and Isabella was feeling happier than she had been in a while. After class she spoke to the teacher about her day. Ms. Ana told her that she could come to her with any doubts, but turns out today was a good day.

She went to the school’s door to wait for Will. He told her he would pick her up as soon as she was out, so she sat by the stairs and waited, watching as minutes turned into an hour and she became tired of waiting, so she went to the secretary.

  
“Hi, my name is Isabella. Can you call my dad?” She asked to the lady sitting behind a desk. She had a funny dress and even funnier glasses that made her eyes look huge in comparison to her head.

“Sweetheart. What is the problem?”

“My dad told me he would pick me up, but he’s late.”

“Wait just a minute, baby.”

In Chicago Med, Will was stuck by a 4 cars pile up. The patients just kept coming and coming, he barely had a minute to breath. Maggie was busy as she ever been, organizing the E.D. making sure everyone was attended. That was when the phone rang one more time and she grabbed it.

“What?” She said, thinking it was the paramedics one more time.

“Can I talk to William Halstead?” A nice voice spoke at her.

Maggie searched for Will and found him in bay 4 putting a chest tube in a man.

“He’s kinda busy right now. Can you leave a message?”

“Ok. Tell him his daughter is already out of class and is waiting for him.”

Maggie’s mouth dropped, there must be a mistake. Will didn’t have a daughter.

“That’s ok. Noted. Will tell as soon as he’s available.”

“Thank you.”

They both turned the phone off.

Back at school, the secretary was looking at Isabella.

“He’s busy at work, but will be here in a while.”

The little girl sighed.

“Why don’t you sit there and start your homework so you don’t have to do it at home?”

Isabella nodded, sat on a chair, opened her blue backpack and started to do her math homework.

Back in Chicago Med, Will was finally free and making his way to the nurse station when he saw Maggie serious looking at him.

“Anything wrong?”

“Your daughter school called and she’s waiting for-”

Will’s eyes widened when he looked at his watch. He was almost two hours late, so all he could do was start to run to his car.

“Mind explaining?” Maggie shouted.

“When I come back.” He shouted back.

Driving to the school, he cursed every single car that were on his way, He couldn’t help but to think about Isabella sitting on a hard chair, her head dropping, completely heartbroken that her father had forgotten her.

When he finally made to the school, he saw his daughter sitting on a desk drawing. He ran to her encounter, hugged her tight,

“I’m so sorry. I got caught up into work. I’m so sorry.”

She hugged him back.

“That’s okay. I did all my homework so now I have the rest of the day free.”

“Oh my...I’m so sorry.”

Will seemed so worried that the secretary had to assure him, that he wasn’t the first father to get caught up into work and didn’t see the hours fly by. He thanked her and made his way out of the school with Isabella holding his hand while she told him everything about her day.


	8. Emergency

“YOU HAVE A DAUGHTER?” Maggie was screaming at Will in the the staff lounge. He was sitting on the couch, face in his hands.

It was a day after the incident. When he got home, Will had called Goodwin and told her he would have to leave earlier, but on the next day he would pay the hours left. Annoyed, she accept and wished him good luck. Now coming back, he had to hear from Maggie.

“Could you not yell? Please.” He spoke.

“Not yell? How you want me to not yell? Will!!! You can’t hide something like this!”

“I didn’t hide anything! I found out about her almost two months ago.” He sighed.

“That’s why you took a vacation?”

He nodded.

“Oh my God, Will! How could that happen?”

She sat down by his side. He explained everything to her, college, Mila, Isabella moving in with him… All the details.

“Where is she now?”

“At home. Jay got out early from the district while I finish my shift.”

“You don’t have a sitter yet?”

“She’s only free next week…”

“Oh my God, Will...Who else knows about her?”

“Goodwin.”

“Only?”

“I’m not telling Natalie. If that’s what you’re asking.”

“Will, you guys almost got married, she deserves to know.”

“She left me struggling by myself when I needed her the most. Why do you think she will want to deal with a 8 years old girl right now?”

Maggie sighed trying to think of something, but eventually she let it go.

“You know that I will help whenever I can, right? Just ask.”

“Thank you.”

She got up, putted a hand on his shoulder and made her way out of room.

Will texted Jay checking if everything was okay, getting as a reply a picture of Isabella sleeping on the couch. He smiled and went back as if nothing had happened.

By the nurse station he was met by Natalie.

“Hey, Will. Where were you? E.D got quiet without you here” Natalie said smiling, eyes on her iPad. 

He started to login into the computer.

“Had to take care of a few things.”

“Is everything okay?” Now she actually sound worried. 

“Yeah. Actually they’re.” He said with a smile. It was true, prior the initial shock, Will was happy with Isabella and each passing day he felt like they grew closer. They were starting to feel like a family.

“I’m glad to hear.”

That was when Maggie announced that they both got incoming. They parted their ways and went back to work.

When Will finished his shift it was already late at night, 10 p.m. to be more specific, he was so tired that he almost thought about not driving and grabbing an Uber so he could get home safe. But he eventually gave up and drove home.

When he walked into his apartment, he saw Jay on his couch watching the game with a beer by his side and Kol went to greet him. Will pet him and sat down besides Jay.

“Much trouble?”

“I’m not joking when I say she’s a great kid, Will. Really, I had no trouble at all. I grabbed her at school, she did her homework without me asking, even ate her vegetables! Even I didn’t eat them!”

Will laughed.

Jay got up, and they both said their goodbyes as Will thanked him.

Will made himself dinner, grabbed a beer and laid on the couch and let sleep consume him.

Three weeks went by without any trouble. Will and Isabella were already used to their routine. Will would wake up earlier, get ready, make them breakfast, wake Isabella, they would eat breakfast together, then while the girl would get ready, he would prep lunch for school.

Will drove her to school and by the end of the school the sitter would get her and bring her home ‘til Will arrived. He would help with homework and talk about their day. At friday’s she had basketball practice and Will or Jay always tried to go for support, whenever they couldn’t the sitter would.

‘Til a wednesday when the sitter, Claire, called Will at work saying that Isabella were quieter than normal and she didn’t want to eat anything. Will sighed.

“Is she feverish?” Will asked worried as Connor walked into the doctor’s lounge finding Will sitting on the desk, fingers massaging the bridge of his nose.

“So just monitore her, giver her plenty of liquids. I’m gonna be there as soon as I can.”

Connor gave him a puzzled look.

“Thank you, Claire. Call me if anything changes.”

Will looked at Connor, he clearly wanted to know what was going on.

“Is Everything fine, man?”  
“Yeah-” Will thought about lying, but what would be the point in doing so. “Hum-” Will tried to put together words. Ever since he went back to work he spoke to people normally, never once mentioned that he have a daughter, how could he do that now? Maggie knew, but Maggie always knew everything.

“Hey, don’t need to tell me if you don’t want to.”

“No, it’s ok-”

April opened the door and showed Connor the results for one of their patients. “Saved by the bell” Connor told Will and he sighed.

Close to the end of Will’s shift Claire called again.

“Mrs. Halstead! I’m going taking Bella to the E.D.” Will could hear screams of pain behind her.

“CLAIRE! WHAT IS HAPPENING?”

Doctors and nurses stopped on their tracks and watched a desperate Will Halstead in the middle of the E.D. yelling at his phone. His face was pure of fear, his hands trembling.


	9. The surgery

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy easter everyone!! This is chapter is longer, but hope you enjoy it!

“Sir, she’s in a lot of pain, in her stomach. I’m already on an Uber.” Claire told him, with a urgency in her voice, clearly trying to catch her breath. 

“I’m waiting at the entrance.” Will spoke to her as ran  went straight into Maggie’s direction and ended the call.

  
“Maggie! My daughter, she’s coming, clear an bay for her, please.”

  
Maggie nodded. “Right on it.”

  
Will ran to the entrance and impatiently waited for Isabella to show up, he tapped his feet and looked in the distance. Not noticing when Natalie came closer, seeing how stressed he was.

  
“Will, is everything ok?” She actually sounded concern for him and if it was at any other moment he would be really glad by it, but instead he kept his eyes on the horizon, barely acknowledging her presence.

“No, Isabella is coming and I don’t know why, but she was screaming.”

Natalie was confused and her voice let it show as she asked “Who is Isabella?”

Will took a deep breath and was about to answer when a black sedan parked in front of him and Claire opened the door. Natalie was forgotten as he went back to desespere mode and looked inside of the car and was met with a crying and curled up little girl on the backseat.

  
“Daddy it hurts!” Bella said holding her belly, trying to make the pain stop.

  
Will grabbed her in his arms, making she yell even more as he got her out of the car in bridal style.

“I know, baby! Daddy is gonna make everything ok, trust me.”

Will ran inside with her in his arms, leaving a confused Natalie in the sidewalk. She took a moment to try to make sense of it all, looking at Will disappear in the middle of the E.D.

In the other hand, Will laided Isabella on a stretcher as April came to his encounter. The little girl kept sobbing non-stop breaking Will’s heart apart. He holded her little hand as April tried to get his attention. “Dr. Halstead! Will!” He broke the eye contact with his daughter and looked at April.

“Isabella Halstead. 8 years. Earlier this morning her sitter called me saying she had loss of appetite and was quieter than normal.” He spoke in the most nonchalant way he could manage as they walked further into the E.D.

  
They got into the trauma bay Maggie indicated, Will could see everyone taking a good look at the girl before eventually coming to help her and he wanted to yell at each one involved. Yes, he had a daughter, no, he didn't tell anyone, but she needed help, they all could gossip when she was alright.

  
Will held her down as she tried to curl up again, he kept assuring her that she was okay as he looked at April.

  
“Her pressure’s 90 over 60 and dropping” April said to Will, expecting for him to do something, but all he could do was hold Isabella’s hand. “Dr. Halstead!”

  
As an angel Natalie walked into the room and started to check on Isabella.

  
“Let’s hang some fluids.” Natalie calmly said. “Isabella, can you tell me where it hurts?” Natalie said in a soft tone.

“Everywhere” The girl said, her voice showing how much pain she was in. 

  
Will looked in despair to Natalie.

  
“I have the portable ultrasound” April announced.

Natalie got it off her hand and started to check her appendix.

“Oh no…” Will said as he saw the image on the screen. Bella’s appendix was inflamed.

“Give her pain meds and call the peds surgeon. Also get full blood tests.” She said at nurses, April and Doris. Now her attention went back to Will who was still trying to comfort the little girl as the meds kicked in. “Will, she needs surgery.”

Will nodded. “Yeah, I know…”

Natalie nodded. “As soon as peds general surgeon is available I will let you know.”

“Thank you.” He said, not ready to have a full conversation now. 

  
She made her way out of the room, maybe she was mad, maybe disappointed, but he didn’t have time to find out now.

  
Bella’s tears started to cease as the meds kicked in and soon she became sleepy. April kept watching the girl as Will struck her hair.

  
“She really looks like you, Will.”

  
He smiled. “Yeah. Jay told me that too.”

“Congrats, Will.” She left the room smiling at him.

“Dad?” A soft voice called him.

“Hey. Feeling better?”

She nodded. “I want to sleep.”

“Then go to sleep, I’m gonna be right here.”

“What if it hurts again?”

“Do you trust me?”

She nodded again.

“Well, we’re at my workplace. And all of these people here are the best doctors and nurses in town, so trust me when I say that it won’t hurt again. Ok?”

She nodded.

“I want my mom…” She said, like spilling out a secret.

Will couldn’t help but to feel sorry for his daughter. He sat on the chair next to bed and for the first time since she arrived he took a good look at her. She was still on her normal clothes, a cardigan with jeans, her hair was messy and her freckles were even more prominent on her skin.

“Hey, stars remember?”

She nodded, her blue eyes were red and puff from the crying, betraying the tough face she was trying to put up. Tears were treating to fall again and Will decided to get into the bed with her. She let room for him and made herself comfortable on his chest. He took her hair out of her face and soon she was asleep.

“I have a hospital gown for her” Maggie said walking into the room. Will gave her a small smile and mouthed thank you. “How is she doing?”

“Appendicitis. Natalie took over and already called peds for surgery.”

Maggie came closer and took a good look at Isabella and smiled.

“I’m sorry you’re meeting her like this.” Will said with an apologetic smile.

Maggie nodded.

“So that was the emergency?” Connor was at the door with a smirk on his face.

Will stared at Connor, laughing like a kid who was caught doing something wrong by their parents.

“Yeah..Isabella.”

“That explain why you vanished from Molly’s.”

Will laughed.

“Wish her the best, man.”

“Thank you, Connor.”

Connor and Maggie made their way out of the room, patients were still waiting and the hospital couldn’t stop just because Isabella.

After a hour April and Doris came to grab Isabella and move her to the peds ward. The girl woke up looking for Will, who was following them close behind.

Will always hated the pediatric floor. The colorful tones on the wall while kids were sick made him almost sick as well, now he didn’t know it was possible but he hated it even more.

“Dad…” Isabella said with a small voice. “I want to go home.”

“We gonna get out of here in a blink of an eye. I promise”

Will tugged himself in the bed and laid beside Isabella. She made space for him and laid on his chest, Will was careful to not take the IV off.

“They gonna to cut me?” She asked with a voice full of fear.

“Three little cuts, you won’t even see it later.”

She nodded.

“Where are your friends?” She asked almost asleep.

“Some of them came to meet you, but you were asleep.”

There was a knock on the door and two nurses came by to take Isabella to the O.R. Will’s heart stopped at the moment, when they walked into the room and he tried to keep it together, but it was hard. The nurses looked at him and told him it was go time. He leaned into Isabella’s gave her a kiss on the forehead and said: “I love you so much.”

She responded by saying “I love you too, Daddy.”

When they wheeled her off, Will decided he could not stay on the empty room so he went to his place on the hospital. The rooftop. He stood there looking the sun going down and darkness taking over Chicago, as the city lights were being turn on.

“I knew I was going to find you here.” He heard Natalie’s voice coming from behind him as she made her way to his side. “Will, you should’ve told me. I could’ve helped you.”

He nodded, he still didn’t trust himself to talk.

“Since when?”

“The vacation I took.” He said still looking at the town.

“Where’s her mom?”

“Died a few months ago. That’s why she came to live with me.”

“I’m so sorry.”

He nodded and they stood in silence for a while.

“I’m a doctor, you know? I should’ve noticed.”

“Will, don’t do that. You know how many times Owen got sick and I didn’t noticed? It’s hard when they don’t know what they are feeling or how to express it.”

“But you know Owen from the start, if six months ago she passes me by on the street I wouldn’t know she is my daughter.” He sighed. “Today was the first time she called me dad.” He said with a smile.

“Then believe me. You’re doing everything right, Will.” She touched his shoulder.

They were interrupted by a nurse letting Will know that everything went well and they were already closing her up. In a few minutes she would be in the room. He thanked Natalie and went back to the room, anxiously waiting for Bella to be back. In a few minutes the bed came back and a sleeping Isabella were on it. Will talked to the surgeon and thanked him.

It took Bella a hour to completely wake up from the anesthesia. She was groggy and Will wasn’t understanding a word the little girl was saying.

“Are you in pain? Baby, are you in pain?”

“Hummmm”

Will sighed, not knowing what that meant. He was frustrated and was about to lose it when he heard Jay’s laugh coming out of the door. He was holding a gas balloon and an Elsa’s doll on his hand. He was still in his usual work clothes, his badge on his chest, he clearly walked out of the district and came to the hospital.

Will was so thankful for that, it felt like he had someone to share his worries with.

“Relax, man.” He said putting the things besides the bed and checking on the girl. “Hey, Bella. How’s my favorite niece?”

“Hummm, Jay”

“That’s right. You gonna be okay, little one.” He stared at Will now. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t be here earlier.”

“Didn’t miss anything. She was so out of it she probably won’t even remember anything.”

Jay nodded. “I brought your iPad. Clothes for both of you, this scrubs stink man, have you ate something?”

“I’m not leaving.”

“I’m not asking you to. I brought you a sandwich from the cafeteria” He said, handling his brother a packet. “ But take care. You look sicker than Bella. Please, change clothes, eat something”

Will realize that Jay was right and made his way to bathroom and decided to take a shower and go to the cafeteria for a few minutes so he would get coffee, leaving Jay with Bella while doing so.

On his way to the cafeteria he met Choi and April. “Will! Will!” April called him.

“Hey guys.”

“How’s Isabella?” April asked.

Will looked at Choi. “My daughter...She had appendicitis. But she’s fine now, just go out of surgery.”

“Great to hear that, Will. Maybe later we can visit her.” Choi said.

“I would like that a lot. Bella always asks about my friends.”

They talked for a while and then made their goodbyes.

Will returned to the room and Bella was more aware right now, even talking to Jay. Her face light up when she saw Will coming. She tried to get up, but she was still in pain.

The rest of the night went by with Will and Jay besides her, watching movies in the iPad ‘til she eventually fell asleep one more time.


	10. After the storm

On the following day, Isabella’s bedroom was the meeting point of the E.D. staff. Goodwin was the first to come by. It was 8 a.m. when she knocked on the door, waking up Will that were sitting in a chair next by his asleep daughter. Hearing the knock his eyes were open in panic ‘til he saw it was only Sharon Goodwin.

“I’m sorry for waking up, Will. Just wanted to know how she was doing.” Sharon said looking to Isabella.

“No, no, no problem.” He was quick in his response. “Everything went well, during the night she was with some pain, but the nurse gave her pain killers. So she’s fine now.”

“I’m extremely glad to hear that.“

In that moment Isabella eyes started to open and she blinked a few more times, searching for Will.

“Dad?”

“Hey! I’m here.” Her eyes met him and he pointed at Goodwin. “Bella, meet my boss, Mrs. Goodwin.”

Sharon came closer to the bed and introduced herself.

“Hello, Isabella. It’s really nice to meet you. I heard a lot about you.”

“Does dad talk about me?” The girl said in surprised.

“Oh. To me you are all he talks about.”

Will smiled thinking about how many time he asked to Goodwin to leave early or for a day off so he could be with Bella.

“I hope you get well soon, Isabella.”

She said her goodbyes and went out of the room.

“Dad, when can we leave?” Bella said hopeful to him.

“Maybe tomorrow.”

She sighed notably sad.

“Don’t be sad. We can spend the entire day watching movies and cartoons. What do you say about that?”

“You won’t go to work today?”

He shook his head. “I’m all yours!”

She gave him a huge smile and Will swore it could light up Chicago. He gave her the iPad and let her pick the movie on Netflix as he laid besides her on the bed one more time.

In the first 10 minutes on Avengers, Connor knocked on the door.

“Hello. Am I bothering?” He said walking in with a gift on his hand.

“Hey!” Will greeted him. “Bella. This is my friend Connor, he came to visit you yesterday but you were asleep.”

Connor came closer and handled her the gift.

“Thank you very much. Ms. Connor.”

Connor raised his eyebrows at Will. It was not unusual to people to be surprised at how polite Isabella was. Will gave all the credits to Mila, she was the one that raised Bella like this, he got the easier part.

“Just call me Connor, ok?”

She nodded as she opened the gift wrap and her whole face light up when she saw a Nancy Drew book.

“Did you like it?” Will asked her.

“A lot. Thank you again”

“At least she won’t be watching Frozen all day.”

Bella was already starting to read it. “She’s a detective, like Uncle Jay.”

Will laughed and talked to Connor about her condition. It was so good to talk to people about his daughter, tell them what she liked, how she was like. So good that he wondered why he didn’t told them about her earlier.

After a few minutes of conversation there was an emergency and Connor had to leave in a hurry. Will stood by Isabella as she read the book, Avengers completely forgotten on iPad by her side.

“Bella, how are you feeling?” Will asked her.

“I’m fine.” She said not taking her eyes off the book.

Will took a deep breath.

“Hey, just be honest with me ok? Were you in any pain prior yesterday?”

She stopped to think for a moment and then nodded.

“Bella, you have to tell me that stuff. No secrets between us, do you remember the promise that we made?”

“I thought it was only my stomach.”

“I know...But tell me the next time ok? I’m a doctor, I can help.”

She nodded.

It was early in the next morning when Isabella was discharged and Will took her home. Making her way out of the hospital, she saw people looking at her as she walked by holding hands with her dad. It made her want to run, ask them why they were staring at her but she looked at Will instead. They looked at her and whispered things at each other.

“Why are people looking at me like that?”

Will took a deep breath. “Because you are my daughter.”

It all sunk in her. In her mind she thought about how Will never told anyone about her. Some of his friends didn’t even know her name, so she fell silent after that. During the drive home she was still silent, when they arrive home she didn’t said anything and went to her room.

Will sensed something was wrong and went to talk to her.

“Why are like this? Are you in pain?”

She shook her head.

“Bella! Honesty!”

“You always talk about honesty but you lied to everyone about me.”

“Excuse me?”

“You didn’t tell anyone about me. Everyone was surprised to see me. You don’t love me?”

Will sighed and kneeled to the floor so he could look at her in the eyes.

“Bella. I love you more than anything in the world. I didn’t think I could love anyone as I love you. My friends didn’t know about you, because and only because I never knew how to tell them. I’m sorry about it. I didn’t know how important it was for you and I can’t tell you how sorry I’m for that.”

Her eyes started to fill with tears.

“When mom was busy she used to take me to the hospital with her. I used to wait for her while coloring at empty beds.” She was crying now. “I loved to see her work and I wanted to be just like her. Everyone knew me. Aunt Karen gave me candys and Aunt Mary used to dance with me when she could. Why I can’t have that anymore?’

She clung herself at Will’s neck.

“I’m so sorry. I’m going to make it up to you, I promise you.”

When Jay came home a few hours later he found Will and Isabella sleeping at her bed. He slowly closed the door and made his way to the living room.


	11. Nightmares

Will came home exhausted from another day at Chicago Med. It seems like every passing day his energy was sucked by cases, dramas and ghosts from his past. Today he was met by Ingrid, the FBI Agent that worked with him during his time undercover. Her partner was in a meth lab blast where two children died and Ingrid was a wreck, to say at least.

He had hugged her while she cried and even gave her a ride home. Now, he just wanted a shower and some sleep. That’s when he heard footsteps coming to his direction. Isabella came running to him, she had her hair braided and was already in her pjs: A wonder woman t-shirt with shorts full of wonder woman symbols. It was a understanding that the girl was in love with Wonder Woman.

“Dad!”

Will hugged her.

“Hey, Bella. How was to be back at school?”

“Fine! I’ve missed Maria” Bella stood in house rest for two weeks since her surgery and today was her first day back. Will was worried about her feeling any pain or something like this, but apparently her day had been much better than his. “I got homework, can you help me?”

Will wanted to say “no”, say to her that he needed his bed right now, but he promised to be there for her and the psychologist had told Will that Isabella needed to feel loved and safe. But above all that, he missed her during the week, and this little moments were all they had, he couldn’t denied this to both of them. So he nodded as she went to grab her books.

“What’s your difficulty?”

“I don’t know multiplication.”

Grabbing her notebook he started to explain to her how it worked, and he couldn’t help but to feel really proud when he noticed that she was paying attention and absorbing all the information he was giving to her.

“When I’m a doctor, am I going to need to know that?” She said at end of his little speech.

“Sure. When someone arrives in the E.D I have to know the exactly amount of medicine I have to give to this person, for that sometimes I multiply, sometimes I divide...Depends on the medicine.”

She nodded, grabbed her notebook and started to make her homework. Will suspected that she already knew how to do it and this was her way to spend some time with him. He got up, placed a kiss on her forehead and went to take a shower.

When he was already in a T-shirt and Isabella was finishing her homework he checked his phone with a text from Jay: Hey. Come to Molly’s. First round on me. He gave a small smile at the screen.

Will: Thank you, but I can’t leave Bella by herself. Maybe next time.

Jay: Come on! Leave her with someone just for tonight. Won’t hurt.

Will: Have fun brother! Talk to you tomorrow.

And like that he threw his phone by his side and checked if Bella had done the homework correctly, as he suspect not a single problem was wrong.

He gave her congratulations and tucked her to bed.

“Dad!” He heard her say before he turned the lights off. “Can you leave the lights on?”

“Bella, my love, we’ve talked about this.” Since she came home from the hospital, she was having nightmares and irrational fears, like from the dark. Will did his best, but eventually he took her to talk to a psychologist. Maybe one of the best decisions he had ever made. The psychologist had told him that Bella was struggling with everything that had happened to her and go through a surgery, a moment of pain without her mom by her side had made her realize that nothing was ever going to be the same, and that Will was all she had.

So her body to express that was making the little girl anxious, having increasing fears, such as the dark and being way more clinginess. In the past days Will had tucked her into her bed, only to found out she sleeping next to him by the morning. It had been hard, specially going back to work, but was necessary.

Returning to his reality he came closer to Isabella, who was holding her Elsa’s doll gave by Jay, looked in her eyes and said:

“Bella, I swear to you there’s nothing in the dark, ok? You’re safe.”

She shook her head.

“It’s not! I saw someone looking at me yesterday! I swear.”

“I believe in you. I believe in you, but you can’t be sleeping with the lights on.” He sighed looking that was no use explaining to the girl about why her body needed to rest at night. “Let’s do like this. I come by later to check on you and I’m going to be by your side ‘til you fall asleep.”

“Promise?” She asked him.

“When did I ever lied to you?”

She nodded closing her eyes.

It took her almost an hour to catch on sleep and Will was already starving. He made himself dinner, grabbed a beer and went to sleep on his bed, checking Isabella’s room before that.

It was exactly 4:23 a.m. when Will heard screaming coming from his daughter room. He arrived there almost bursting the door he had left closed, only to meet his daughter moving herself in bed, having a nightmare. He ran to her, sat close by the bed and tried to wake her up. “I’m here. Hey, dad is here. Dad is here.” He kept saying to her, while holding her in his lap.

He noticed that she had wet the bed, something he never saw her do.

When she opened her teary eyes, she was clearly confused by it all.

“You had a bad dream, you are awake now. Everything’s ok.”

She clinged herself to him.

“It was mom. She couldn’t speak. Her mouth was shutted.”

He closed his eyes and holded her even tighter.

“That’s ok. It didn’t really happen. Your mom loved you so much, she would never hurt you.”

She nodded and buried herself into Will’s chest. After the tears stopped he said that she should take some shower as he cleaned up her bed. When she was ready she laid next to him in his bed.

“I’m sorry I woke you up.”

“Don’t be sorry for that, ok? We gonna get you help and soon this nightmares will stop.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. I’m your dad, you’re my priority.”

They laid in Will’s bed and after a few moments Will fell asleep. When he woke up in the morning Bella was already awake, he suspected that she didn’t sleep at all at night, and he cursed himself for falling asleep and leaving her by herself.

So he looked into her blue eyes and they were teary. They kept looking at each other for a while ‘til Isabella broke the silence.

“Can we stay here today?”

“I’m sorry, but you have school and I have to work.”

She took a deep breath.

“Did you love my mom?”

Will was taken back by the question. He took a few seconds to put together his thoughts.

“Your mom was my best friend in college. I used to tell her everything. She knew all my secrets and flaws. So, yes. I loved her. A lot.”

“Will I ever forget her?”

“Never. She will always be part of you, part of who you are. And...I have a bunch of videos and photos of the two of you, whenever you want we can always look at that so you can remember her.”

“Yesterday, Stella at school said she forgot her Gramma’s voice. I realized that I’m forgetting my mom’s voice as well.”

Tears started to fall from her eyes and Will dried every single one of them. He got up from the bed and opened a drawer next to his bed and grabbed a phone. He turned it on and played a video of Mila and Isabella at New York subway. Bella was walking normally, trying to make a perfect shot of her as the subway’s wind messed her hair. Mila laughed and ”direct” the whole thing.

Bella tugged herself into Will while he played the video with a smile across her face. When he looked at the clock again he realized that they both would be late and seeing that Isabella was already feeling better he decided to make her get out of bed. She hugged him one more time.

“Hey, as soon as I’m out of work we can take Kol to the dog park and have hamburguer. What do you say about that?”

“Thank you.”

She said letting go off him and making her way to the bathroom. Will watched her disappear on the hallway while he took a deep breath and prepared himself for another day at work.


	12. New Beggings

Ever since the incident with Ingrid’s partner, she used to spend more time in the Hospital what made her and Will grow closer and closer each passing day. He used to give her rides home every night and spend every free time he had with her, even lunch they used to share.

  
Although it was new to him, he was starting to see her differently. Her smile was beautiful, she was funny, caring and all the times she had met with him and Bella at the dog park she would be really sweet to his daughter. What more could he ask?

  
On a friday night, Will was playing Uno cards with Isabella on the living room. She threw her head back laughing while having french fries. It was one of the good days that Isabella’s psychologist had talked about. Some days she would wake up in the middle of the night crying for her mom, while others they would spend the whole day in the park and she would look the happiest she ever been without even mentioning Mila.

  
So Will’s job was trying to make good days more common than the bad ones, and this week he was almost victorious. Seeing her laughing and acting normal was the biggest prize he could get.

  
Their little time was interrupted by a doorbell ring. Will got up while Isabella sighed, she was having a good time and the fear of someone disturbing their peace increased in her. When her dad opened the door she saw a woman standing by it with a bottle in her hands.

“Hey, Will!” The woman said and her father smiled widely, although he couldn’t help his surprised face as he was looking at her.

“Hey, Ingrid!” He looked confused at Bella, sensing that something was about to go wrong.

“Oh my God, I shouldn’t have come, I’m so sorry. It’s only that I tried to text you but you didn’t text me back…”

“No! It’s okay!” Will interrupted her. “Come on in!” He said getting out of the door way.

Isabella watched the scene by her seat in the living room floor. The woman talking to her father was beautiful and young. She had seen her a few times in the dog park with her own dog, but never really got her name. Involuntary she felt smaller when the woman walked in, suddenly her muscles could not work straight and she just wanted to run and hide.

  
“Ingrid, meet my daughter Isabella.” Will said introducing the both of them. “Bella, this is my friend Ingrid.”

“Hi, Isabella!” Ingrid greeted her with a smile, for some reason Isabella thought the woman was more nervous than her.

“Hello.” The girl said with a small voice.

“So! I was playing Uno card with Bella. Do you want to join in…”He looked at Bella who looked disappointed. “On the next round.” Bella almost smiled.

“Sounds good for me.” Ingrid made her way to kitchen opened the bottle of wine and gave Will a glass.

She sat down by the floor with them and watched as they played. After a while the room was a little bit less tense and Ingrid was trying to make conversations with Isabella. Will smiled at the scene. When the little finally shouted UNO! In the top her lungs it reassured him that maybe they were going to be ok.

“So, can I play as well?” Ingrid asked to Bella, who nodded.

After a while, the three of them were sitting on the floor, playing their cards and Isabella was relaxed. She made fun of Will’s buying card with Ingrid while her father pretended to be mad at her “You gonna get the bus to school on monday, just for you to know.” Isabella laughed so much that her eyes started to tear up.

“Well, I can take her to school, ‘cause the girls will finish you!” Ingrid said as she high-fived Isabella.

They still played a few more rounds ‘til Will noticed that his daughter eyes were heavy.

“Hey, you want to go to bed?”

“But it’s nice here…” The little girl said as if she would cry.

“How about you go to sleep and tomorrow morning we can have fun in the park?” Ingrid said to her.

Bella nodded.

“Come on! Let’s get you into bed! Go brush your teeth!!”

Will ran after her while she giggled. Almost half a hour later, Will came out of the room and sat beside Ingrid in the couch.

“Sorry for coming without warning. I thought you, we could use a distraction.” Ingrid said.

“No problem. For real. I feel like Bella needed a female company.”

She laughed.

“It was fun!” He looked at her. “Really! It was a different friday night.”

“You know...If someone told me a year ago that I would be spending my friday night playing Uno cards with my 8 years old daughter I wouldn’t believed them.”

She laughed.

“You’re doing a good job! I mean it.”

“People keep telling me that, but for some reason I don’t believe in them.” He smiled.

“Well, you should.” She looked at him.

“Why are you really here Ingrid? I don’t think you really wanted to stay playing uno cards.”

“Though day at work. 32 shots were fired in my direction, I saw a agent being shot in front of me...I needed something else.”

“Yeah...You know somedays I almost lose it. When I treat a kid or when I have to tell someone there’s nothing else I can do, but then I get home and there is Bella. Someone that I can do something about, someone that I can take care…” He got lost in his thoughts.

“Back then you didn’t know her, right?”

Will shook his head.

“Would you still go undercover if she was in the picture?”

“I’m all she has. I can’t take those risks again. She can’t be orphan.”

Ingrid nodded.

Maybe it was the alcohol, maybe it was the situation, but Will really wanted to kiss her right now.

“I should get going.”

“Yeah, it’s getting late.”

They made their way to the door and Will hugged her and watched her leave.

So, naturally the first person he talked about was Jay.

“I need your help!” Will almost shouted at his phone, checking to see if Isabella was still asleep. He told Jay everything that was going on.

“So, Agent Lee huh?”

Will sighed as he threw himself in the couch.

“Come on! Something happened?”

“No...Not yet!”

“What’s the problem?”

Will said in a whisper. “Bella, of course!”

“Come on! One day you’re going to find someone and she’s going to have to accept that.”

“But not right now! Yesterday was the first night she slept the whole night without nightmares.”

Jay sighed.

“Has been that bad?”

Will nodded. “She’s 8, Jay. Lost her mom, her home, her city, her school and came to live with a stranger. So, yeah. It’s been that bad.”

He didn’t want to sound so hard, but to think about it all made him almost sick to his stomach. Even though she putted a tough face in front of him, he knew how hard it has been. The talks with her psychologist had helped and each session he could see a little bit more of normalcy in her.

“Is she still co-sleeping with you?”

“Sometimes.”

Jay sighed.

“I can’t be with someone if my priority is sleeping in a room cuddling a Elsa’s doll.”

‘Will, no one is asking you to marry Ingrid. Just ask her out, go have dinner or something. A night out won’t kill Bella. Dude, when was the last time you went out? And I’m not saying in a date. But with your friends. You don’t even go to Mollys anymore. Man, you need a life as well.”

Will let the words sink in. He couldn’t deny that his brother was right, but to think about Isabella waking up alone, without him was enough to make him terrified. He felt like Isabella needed him and whenever that would be, he had to be by her side.

“Maybe when she’s older.”

Jay rolled his eyes and although Will couldn’t see him, he knew what his brother had done.

“Jay! She’s sick! She has anxiety and she’s 8! Right now I’m the closest thing she has of a family, of support, I can’t do that. I can’t…”

“Hey, that’s ok. I understand.”

That was a moment of silence between them.

“Who would thought...Will Halstead a responsible father.”

Will almost laughed.

“A terrible one.”

“Better than dad, at least.”

They kept talking the whole night, and Jay only called off when it was close to 2 a.m. Will cleaned up bottles and before going to sleep himself, he checked on Bella’s room. She was facing the wall, from the door was almost impossible to see if she was asleep or pretending. So he came closer and watched her eyelashes flutter, as if she was dreaming. He tucked her in one more time and started at her favorite nightlight, the Wonder Woman symbol.

He smiled thinking about how happy she was when he showed her what he had brought to her. He told her that was a sign for Wonder Woman to come and protect her while she was asleep. He didn’t really thought it was going to work, but that was the first night in weeks he didn’t woke up with her cries at night.

So he looked at her a little while as he threw himself into bed and let the thoughts of him and Ingrid go by his head.


	13. Sleepover

Will was sitting by the couch, beer in his hand, watching the hockey game. Isabella was in the floor, petting Kol and eventually looking at the screen. It was during the commercial break that she sat by the couch and seriously looked at Will. He putted the TV on mute and turned at her.

“What’s wrong?”

She took a deep breath. “Dad.” She was in silence after that and Will waited as she putted her thoughts together. “It’s Maria’s birthday next week. Can I go sleepover at her place?”

Will’s eyes widened at the request. It’s been a month since the night terrors had stopped, but Will still worried every single night about her. He would check on her at least three times a night, tuck her in and see if she needed anything. To go from that to sleeping in a stranger’s house was a huge step.

“Sleepover? Are you sure?”

She nodded. And he putted his hands into his face.

“But it’s okay if you don’t want me to go. I can say to her that I couldn’t make it-” She quickly said as she saw Will’s worry, she didn’t want to make him feel bad or sad about the situation, they had a deal and in that deal they would made their lives easier, work as a team. So if he didn’t feel like it, it was okay.

“Do you really want to go?” Will asked her.

‘I don’t know.” She said in a small, shy voice.

“Why is that?”

“I don’t wanna her to be scared if I wake in the night.”

She clearly was worried about the nightmares and how the others kids would react to that. It was hard enough for her father to go running into her room whenever she needed, he would be scared and nervous about and for her. The thought of that happening in a stranger’s place, without comfort made them both shiver.

Will thought for a moment and sighed.

“Let’s do like this. I will talk to Maria’s parents and explain the situation to her, if she assures me it will be okay, you can go.” Isabella felt the anxiety build in her. “If you don’t want to go, tell me, okay? I can be the bad guy who told you no and that will be our secret.”

“I want to...But I don’t really want to.”

“Hey, a lot of kids get scared in their first sleepover. When I was a kid I almost had to call my mom in the middle of the night.”

She was surprised.

“Really?”

He nodded. “It’s really scary to be away from home for the first time, but then me and my friends stared to play videogames and I had such a good time that I forgot why I was scared.”

“Can I call you if I can’t sleep?”

“Always.”

So after the game, Will called Maria’s mom. She was a nice lady that screamed too much on the phone, much like her daughter. Maria was Isabella’s best friend since the first day at school, a small skinny girl with a loud voice and always full of excitement. Different from Isabella she was always talking and sometimes even telling white lies, she had the tendency of putting everything into a larger scale what made people laugh. Everything was melodramatic to her.

Will met Maria’s mom on the park where the girls decided to “coincidentally meet” one day. As they ran and played, Will talked to Helena about their daughters, she seemed like a nice lady and thinking about it, didn’t really look like a bad idea to have not only a night out, but also a normalcy in Isabella’s life.

When Will called Helena she explained to him that was going to be a birthday party, but only Isabella and Zoe, a neighborhood, were going to spend the night. Will told her about his worries, about Bella’s nightmares and how anxiety made her lose her sleep at night.

They talked for almost a hour and at end of it, Helena promised to keep an eye at Isabella during the whole thing and Will trusted her.

At lunch time he gave his daughter the news, he thought she was going to be happy but her face looked more worried than anything else.

“You can always call me, but I think it’s important for you to try something different.”

“Ok. I’ll try.”

So Will decided to cheer up, planning what clothes she would use and if she wanted some different hairstyles. Instead of worrying her about what could go wrong he decided to make her excited about spending time with her friend.

The week went by a blink and soon it was the day they were waiting for. When Will left the hospital and made his way home, he found a really distressed girl waiting for him at home. Bella was sitting on the couch, legs hanging as the TV was on, but she wasn’t really paying attention at it by her lost gaze.

“Hey, baby. Are you ready?” He asked throwing his bag at the side.

She looked at him and nodded, clearly nervous.

“Have you packed?”

“I was waiting for you.”

“So come with me. Let’s do this!” He took her hand and they made their way to her room. She sat on the bed as Will grabbed a big purse and started to throw toothbrush, hairband, underwear, pajamas, clothes for the next day and few medicines. Just in case.

Soon her bag was ready and they made their way to the car. As Will drove he tried to engage a conversation with his daughter but she seemed lost in thoughts. When he parked in front of the house he took a moment to look at her in the backseat.

“I’m so proud you are doing this.”

She gave him a small smile.

“You know if anything happens call me. They have my number and I will come pick you up any time. Ok? I mean any time.”

She nodded.

He made his way out of the car and rang the doorbell as Helena, dressed in a beautiful but casual dress came to meet them.

“Bella!!!!” The excited screams were heard behind Helena and Maria came running towards them. She hugged Isabella. “I’m so happy you came. You’re my best friend!” She said not letting Isabella go.

Will laughed at the scene and looked at Helena.

“Ok, Maria give her some air, please.”She said breaking the hug. “Let her say bye to her dad.”

“Bye, dad. I love you.’ Isabella told him a small voice.

Will went to her level and hugged her. “I love you too. Have fun.”

They could barely finish the hug when Maria grabbed Isabella’s hand and rushed her inside the house.

“This is her bag. Everything she might need is here...Anything you can call me.” Will said to Helena.

“That’s okay. Thank you for letting her come, Will.”

They said their goodbyes and Will felt like he had a hole in his chest. He wanted to be a fly so he would know how his daughter was doing, if she felt the same as he did or if she already forgot about her insecurities.

So he started the car and made his way to the only place he knew he would relax a little.

When he walked into Molly’s the first to recognize him was Hermann. Then it became a mess of screams and greetings, including from his brother. Apparently people noticed he wasn’t that present anymore. He laughed and made his way to the table were Jay, Hailey, Adam and Kevin were sat.

“LOOK WHO IS ALIVE!!!” Adam shouted.

“Did your boss finally gave you a night off?” Hailey asked him in a jokeful tone.

He laughed one more time as he asked for a beer.

“Yeah. Sleepover at a friend’s house.”

“When you’re going to let us know her man?” Adam asked him.

“As soon as you guys want, but I’m not taking her to the district to see a bunch of dead bodies.”

They talked ‘til it was late at night. Although Will was having a good time, he checked his phone each five minutes, making sure he didn’t missed any call or texts about his daughter. But nothing came ‘til it was close to midnight:

Helena - The girls just went to bed. Everything is fine.

He texted her back, thanking her for everything and telling her that would sleep close to the phone, Honestly, he didn’t really felt like sleeping.

When everyone said their goodbyes at Molly, he still wasn’t even a little bit tired. Getting in the car he thought that this was going to be his life from now on, spending his nights waiting and worrying for his daughter when she was away.

He made home close to two a.m., suddenly the house was bigger and larger, like something was missing. He spends so much time worrying about how would Isabella spend the night that he didn’t think that he was also used to having her around and a night away would be even worse for him.

He laid in bed and waited for the hours to fly by, without any success. “This is the last time she does this.” He said to himself watching the sky by his bedroom’s window.

Sometime between his thoughts he must had fallen asleep, ‘cause when he woke up it was already 7 a.m. and he thanked God for that. Just two hours to go.

When it was exactly 9 a.m. he started the car and made his way to the house she was in. Arriving there, Helena greeted him in her usual self and told him they were still having breakfast. When he made his way to the kitchen, Isabella was already in regular clothes, hair wet as she ate the pancakes.

He couldn’t hide his happiness as he saw her. Involuntary he hugged her, while she was smiling at him.

“Hey! Did you have fun?” Will asked her.

She nodded, her mouth still full of food.

“We watched wonder woman and then we ate cupcakes...a bunch of it, then we went to bed and started to talk about ‘til it was midnight, can you believe? I never stood so late in my life. Then I fell asleep.” Maria excited told Will about it.

He nodded as he smiled to Isabella.

When she was done, he grabbed her things told Maria’s family goodbye and made his way to the car. As soon as they were alone in the car, he could feel that Isabella wanted to tell him something, but didn’t know how. So he decided to be honest with her.

“This is the last time you’re sleeping away from home. I missed you the whole night.”

She sighed in relief.

“Oh...Me too. I had to count sheeps to sleep.”

He laughed at how seriously she looked saying that.

“But did you have fun?”

“Yeah, everything but the sleeping part was good. I missed my bed. Oh! And Zoe complained the whole night about everything…”

Will laughed the whole way home as Isabella told him stories about her night. Maybe he was a dad for only a short period of time, but it was enough to Isabella getting under his skin and be part of him and his life and now he could truly say that he couldn’t live without her.


	14. The way it ends

Although the curtains were still on the window, the sun was already shining inside the room. Isabella opened her eyes and looked around the room, everytime she did so the feeling of sleeping in a stranger’s house disappeared little by little. The white walls were familiar now, as well as the smell of Chicago. Still, was little weird how quiet the street was, without the loud noises the whole time, but with time she was sure she would get used to it.

It’s been nearly two months, moving to another town wasn’t the end of the world as some would say, ever since her mom passed away the thought of still being in New York was too painful. Every street she passed by reminded her of some memory with her mother, so starting from zero was good, maybe that was what she needed. It helped how she never felt like she was alone and how she always had shoulder to lean on, ever since day one.

  
So she stood in bed for a few more minutes, thinking everything over. After 15 minutes she decided it was time to get up and was met by Kol on the corridor, she went by her dad’s bedroom and saw the he was still sleeping. She closed the door and decided to make him breakfast.

  
She made coffee and decided to make toasts. While she waited it to be ready she turned the tv on, her dad still didn’t allow her to have a cellphone, only after she turned 13, so she looked for cartoons and watched it for a while with Kol by her side. It was a sunday morning and the laziness was still all over the place. When she heard the toaster’s beep she made her way to kitchen one more time, served the coffee and set the table as it was in a fancy restaurant, the best she could.

By the end of it the clock showed 8:42 a.m. and Will was still profund asleep on his bed. She thought about waiting for him so they could have breakfast together, but the noises coming from her stomach differ from her. So she grabbed a few toasters, made her way to the couch and putted some music on YouTube.

Soon she was dancing in the living room with her pajamas as Shawn Mendes was coming out of the speakers.

Will woke up with that sound, took a deep breath and made his way out of bed. He stopped in the doorway and watched as Isabella happily danced around, her hair going in all directions as she made movements without any truly coordination. The TV controller was her microphone as she held it like she was performing in front of a sold out of Maddison Square Garden.

The feeling in his chest was almost inexplicable. It was the small remnant of what she once were right in front of him. The person she was before her life turned upside down and challenge after challenge came on her way. He watched it ‘til the music was over and she was picking another one. That’s when he decided to reveal himself.

“Good morning” Will said approaching her.

Will could see she was trying to pretend that nothing was going on, but her messy hair and sweaty face, as well as her fast breathing, were evidences of her crime. Coming closer her face was red just like she was doing a hour cardio.

“Hey! I made us breakfast” She said to him.

He looked at the kitchen and saw the perfect set table with 4 toaster and a bottle of what he assumed was coffee.

“Thank you so much.”

He sat in the table and surprisingly the coffee was good, maybe way too sweet, but still good. He drank it and then made his way to the couch where now Bella was just sitting watching videoclipes, her feet tapping in the rhythm of some song Will couldn’t figure the name, but she knew all the lyrics to it.

“So...What do you want to do today?”

Her attention went to him.

“Don’t know. We have to do something?” She said laying on the couch. Clearly, she just wanted to have a lazy day, with Netflix and a couch.

“So good. I’m going to ask for a take out, ‘cause I’m not cooking today.”

“Can we have hamburguers?”

“No! Oh my God! No!” They both laughed at her request.

They stood there ‘til she decided it was time for taking a shower. When she came back she was wearing shorts and a pink t-shirt as Will was angrily shouting to his phone:

“You don’t know how that happened? How could they let it happen?” He was almost screaming. Bella had never seen her father like that before, but wasn’t anger that she saw in him, it was fear.

There was a pause and the person on the other side of the line said something that made Will lose it.

“YOU FIX IT! I DON’T CARE HOW!”

It was when he turned his phone off and threw himself in the couch, clearly upset.

Slowly, Bella made her way to his side and crossed her legs as she tried to look at his face, who was almost hided by his hands.

“Is everything ok?” She said calmly.

He just took a deep breath.

“It’s grown up stuff, ok? You shouldn’t worry about it.”

“But is something wrong?”

“Bella. Please.” He looked at her eyes. “Please, this is between me and Jay, okay? Let us worry.” He tried to small at her.

In his mind he couldn’t believe. Jay had called him to say that Tim, one of Ray Burke’s sons had just escaped from prison. Everything that he did as a CI was now coming back to haunt him, the fear and the anxiety were back again, this time multiplied. Ray and his sons knew it was him, the whole mafia knew it was him who snitched on them. He was the one who putted them in jail and now Tim was out. Tim was probably wanting revenge and different from Tommy he wouldn’t spare Will’s life just for some kind words.

When he looked at Isabella’s eyes the nightmare became worst. Now there was his daughter on the game, a defenseless 8 years old that had no idea of what she was about to face. If something happened to her because of him, he wouldn’t be able to live with himself.

“Dad. Honesty, our deal, remember?” She said clearly worried.

He smiled and hugged her.

“I swear to you, as soon as it’s over I’m telling you everything, but right now, you have nothing to worry about, okay?”

She was clearly frustrated by everything, but decided to let it go. If it was something important he would tell her.

“So, which movie are we watching?” He said trying to go back to normalcy.

“I picked last time, it’s your turn.”

“No, come on. I’m terrible of it.”

As she chose Wonder Woman for the fourth time, he was lost in thoughts. Eyes focusing on the horizon as he imagined how much risk he and Isabella were right now.


	15. Dad?

There was a common worried feeling for Will in the last few weeks. FBI, CPD and Jay tried to take him out of town but without any success, so the alternative was the police car passing through his place each 10 minutes, Bella staying in the CPD or MED everyday ‘til Will could take her home and them barely leaving the house after.

  
Their routine was boring and each passing day Isabella was getting more and more frustrated. She would stay at the CPD when the ED was packed and although Jay would let her play in his cellphone, she soon ran out of things to entertainment herself. The worst part of it all was not understand what was happening. Why suddenly she couldn’t go out?

  
Sometimes she would stay by her uncle’s side while he worked, but in the last three days there were a homicide and she was kicked out of the bullpen and let to a desk to stay with someone called Trudy. The girl would sit down in a desk, only speaking when she was asked something and trying her best to stay out of the way. Sometimes she was so quiet that Sergeant Platt, as Isabella politely called her, would forget she was there.

  
Each passing day the little girl would shrink herself more and more into her own little world. Will, of course, noticed how the progress they had done was vanishing. He did his best to try and explain why this difficult time was happening and how she should try to hold on a little longer. But it was hard.

Everytime she saw her dad he was more and more worn out, she noticed how his hair was always a mess, he had bags under his eyes and his beard was needing to be shaved. So she also tried to stay out of his way. But her strategy of making people’s lives easier was not working for herself.

She was crying herself to sleep every night, sometimes she wouldn’t sleep at all, just thinking and missing her old life.Not having place in the world for you was hard, even harder it you were a kid.

The night was getting even darker and her bed was getting more and more uncomfortable. She dried the tears from her eyes and heard the front door opening,  what made her get out of her bedroom. “Dad?” She said almost as a whisper.

Walking in small steps, she noticed the living room lights were on, so she called her father again, this time a little bit louder. When no response came, her heart started to beat like a drum in her chest, her brain was telling her to keep going but her legs didn’t follow the command.

“Dad!” This time she yelled as loud as she could. She yelled again, again and again. Her voice was the only sound in the apartment.

She considered the fact she could be just having a nightmare, so she pinched herself in vain. Whatever was happening was real.

Taking a deep breath, she ran as fast as she could towards the living room. Only to find the apartment door open, and no sign of her dad. Looking around the couch was still unmade, nothing was broken or out of place.

She ran again, this time to her father’s bedroom. His bed was unmade and his cellphone was still on the nightstand. She grabbed it and called the only person she thought could help her.

The phone rang twice ‘til finally a voice was heard on the other side of the line.

“Uncle Jay!” Isabella quickly said.

“Bella? What’s happening?” Jay was suddenly alert. In his voice there were no indications that he were asleep.

“Dad is not here. He’s not here.” She didn’t have time to explain, she didn’t know what was happening. So she spoke the only thing she was sure.

“Where are you?”

“In dad’s room. Here’s not in the house.”

There were a loud sigh in Jay’s side of the line.

“UNCLE JAY!”

The scream took him out of his thoughts.

“Bella. Hide yourself, ok? Anywhere. Under the bed, into the closet. The best hiding spot you can find and you stay there, ok? And talk to me only through text, can you do that?”

“Ok.” She ran to the kitchen and hid herself under the cabinet. Closing it’s door, she noticed that the darkness was getting to much. In the tiny space she could barely move and she felt like the air wasn’t getting into the cabinet.

She was commanding her lungs to push more air, but there were none. Her chest was tightening and hurting.

She heard steps coming closer and closer, the air getting more and more thin.

When the cabinet’s door opened she was gasping for air that weren’t coming. Jay pushed her out and pulled her into his arms as they both stood at the kitchen’s floor. He tightened his hold, whispering “It’s ok.” in her head.

She sobbed for a few minutes. Time enough for Jay’s team to come into the apartment. The first one to come in was Adam, he called Jay name and stopped when he found Jay and Isabella on the kitchen floor, the girl’s eyes were puff and red and Jay was worried.

“No signs of breaking-in. Will must have let whoever it was in.” Jay spoke calmly trying not to scare Isabella even more.

Ruzek nodded already knowing what to do.


	16. Time out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the time await, had some college stuff that go way too much of my time. So, if anyone still cares or enjoys this history here goes a new chapter.

Will heard a small knock on the door as he watched TV. The sound was so small he almost missed it, but the state of constant alert had, somehow, made his senses more acute. Adrenaline, he knew pretty well what this somehow was.  
He had tried to sleep that night, really tried. Closed his eyes, counted sheeps ‘but his brain just wasn’t stopping. His bed appeared to be on fire, so he got up on a jump and went to check on Bella. Slowly he opened the door to his daughter on the bed, apparently asleep facing the wall.  
That’s when he decided the sleep wasn’t coming for him tonight and decided to watch some TV just to pass the time.  
When he went to check the peephole he saw Tim pointing a gun across the door in Will’s heart direction.  
“Will… Open the door…” He said in a nonchalant way, never letting go of the gun. “I know you’re in there. Open it and I don’t get the girl.”  
That were the magical words to get him to open the door and put his hands up.  
“Please, whatever you do, don’t do it here.” Will begged as Tim was getting closer and closer.  
"As you wish" were the last thing Will heard before his world went black..  
Will woke up in a mattress so thin he could feel the hard ground beneath him. His eyelids opened up slowly as he looked around the room, and he was relieved knowing that he was alive. Maybe there was a way out.  
The room was simple and small, grey walls surrounding it and the lack of furniture made it look bigger than it really was. There were no windows, only a metal door that would be hard to break if he ever thought about running away.  
He waited for a while for someone to come in and treat him, to a gun, punches, tasers anything to be used on him for revenge, anything. But nothing ever came. He thought it might had been hours since he woke up when a small opening in the door light up the room and food was given to him.  
The food consisted in a soup that didn’t taste half as bad as it looked, maybe it was his hungry, but he drank it all fast enough to make his stomach hurt later. But he needed it. Just halfway through it, he thought that it may had been poisoned and that was how he was going to die.  
He laid on the floor waiting for death to come. It didn’t. Instead he feel asleep.  
The same routine went on and on. Soon he lost track of time, of how many days he was in this room without seeing the sunlight, hearing a human voice, speaking to someone. He started to have conversations to himself, but he thought that might make him go insane even faster and he tried to stop. But having something to use his voice was better than nothing.  
Sometimes he would scream, knock on the door, cry as loud as he could, once he tried to get him skin out just so he would feel something. He thought about hitting his head hard enough on the wall several times, just to see if someone would come to him. If he was necessary alive. But soon he understood that he wasn’t necessary at all.  
He was in the cell for days (maybe?) and no one came to check on him. See if he was fine or even to hurt him even more, no one came to talk to him about all the bad he had done in his life and how much he deserved what was happening to him. When he realized that he felt like a kid in time out, thinking about his mistakes and a wave of guilt, fear and shame crashed into him. He let himself drown in it.  
His mind wandered around on what Jay, Natalie, Connor, everyone at med were doing. If they already declared his death or if they were still looking for him. He tried not to think about Bella, the last time he did he cried for what looked like hours and then he couldn’t breath, couldn’t do anything except cry and pray that she got over his death. That she wasn’t put on the system. That Jay got her custody. Maybe she would be fine. She had to be fine.  
As he laid on the cold and hard floor, staring at the ceiling singing “You are the best thing” to himself in a whisper, silent tears running down the side of his face as he tried to remember the faces of his friends and family when he had that housewarming party with Nina and found out he couldn’t remember them anymore.  
When the song ended, the sound of his voice was replaced by screams and a loud noise coming from the door.  
“Will?”


	17. Coming Home

 

Jay’s voice cut through the darkness. It was muffled and carried more doubt than certainty. 

Will slowly got up from the floor, feeling his muscles protesting against the action. He couldn’t help but let out a hiss when he stood up and waited for the door to open. His eyes weren’t used to the light that was coming from it and it took everything he had to not yell in pain, but instead, he just closed his eyes and shield it with his hands the best he could. 

Although he couldn’t quite see anything yet, he heard large steps coming towards him, and he had to stand his foot when he felt arms bracing him tights and Jay’s cologne filling his nose for the first time in what felt like years. He held his brother as tight as he could. 

“Hey man.” Jay broke the embrace and took a step back checking Will from head to toe. “Are you hurt?” 

Will shook his head, feeling a little dizzy and his chest tightening. 

  “I’m so glad you’re alive.” Jay said and pulled Will on his embrace once again. 

In a minute, paramedics were filling the room. Asking Will questions he couldn’t answer because his voice just didn’t come out. He could hear people around him whispering and feel their stares at him as well as he felt Jay’s hand on his shoulder, he couldn't really tell if it was for his comfort or Jay’s. 

He heard when Sylvie told Jay he was in shock, like there was a big surprise in it. People kept moving and a stretcher came into his vision camp as well as Hank Voight, he let them help him lay down and Jay’s voice saying “ _ It’s gonna be okay.”  _ was the last thing he heard before he closed his eyes and let darkness surround him. 

 

Before he woke up, the sterile and familiar smell of Med filled his lungs and in a moment it was all too much. Nausea hit him like a truck and he decided to stop breathing for a while just to see if he could get used to the smell. 

He heard the beeping sound of what he assumed was a heart monitor getting slower as he took short breaths trying to slow his heart rhythm. In the same second he felt strong hands holding his shoulder’s down. The touch was simple, but it made Will feel like his skin was burning. In this moment, everything felt so much.  It was too much smell, too much light (even though his eyes were still closed), too much touch and senses being activated around him. 

“ _ It’s alright. Hey, you’re fine.”  _ Jay’s voice again was a calm and steady sound in the middle of the chaotic hurricane of feels around him. “ _ Just be calm...That’s… You’re fine now.”  _

It took a few moments for Will to get used to everything and feel like that was the right moment for him to close his eyes. 

Slowly he opened his eyes, seeing everything blurry at first. He noticed that was a slight light upon him, lighting the room just enough for him to see Jay’s with a small and proud smile in front of him. Will took everything in, seeing the grey hospital room that he was in. Seeing the machines and IVs he was hooked up to, the white sheet in him and for the first time he noticed that he was so cold. Like he never would get warm again. 

“B-” Will tried to say, but his throat hurt. As fast as he could, Jay grabbed a cup filled with ice ships and gave a few to him. 

Once he felt like he was ready enough to talk, he tried looked at Jay and tried to make the words in his brain come out of his mouth. 

“Be’a” Was the best he could do. 

“Asleep, at my place. Hailey was with her.” Jay told him. “It’s 2:46 am, Will. There is just so much a kid can endure to stay up.” 

His tone was soft and almost playful, but soon his facial expression changed to serious and Will could feel his brother cop’s voice coming. 

“You were gone for 6 weeks, Will. She was worried sick, I was worried sick. We thought that-” Jay couldn’t finish it. “It was hard. There were no videos, ransom notes or anything. Voight had to pull a lot of favors to find you and I didn’t even know what we were going to find.” 

Will nodded. 

“J’y. I’m f’e” Will’s voice still weren’t quite getting out. So he decided that he would sleep a little bit more, feeling the exhaustion hit him. 

 

When he woke up again, the sun was coming out of the windows and his voice felt a little better. A nurse he didn’t know the name stood by his side and when she noticed his eyes on her, she smiled a little and decided to check his IV and vitals. He didn’t hear the beeping of the heart monitor this time and assumed that he almost didn't freak out like he did when he first woke up. 

The room was empty. Jay was nowhere in sight and that made him more nervous than it should, but he felt his breathing evening a little when Choi slid the glass door and walked into the room. 

“Hey, Will. Glad to finally see you awake.” Choi spoke coming closer to his bed and staring at him. 

“Where is Jay?” Will spoke when Choi analyse his iPad. 

“You were asleep for almost 50 hours so we decided to send Jay home.” Choi calmly spoke as Will’s eyes widened at the information. “You came into the ED unconscious, dehydrated, anemic and malnourished. As well as a beginning of a pneumonia, but with antibiotics and a feeding tube we were able to  reverse it.” 

Will could only nod. 

“You’ve been here for 8 days” 

That took Will by surprise as well. He imagined that he was there for a while but 8 days were way too long. He could almost feel the reaper by his side, smiling and saying that he almost took him, that maybe next time he won’t be so lucky. 

“My daughter?” 

“Not talking to Maggie because she wouldn’t let her come to see you.” Will laughed a little, although it became a cough after and hurt his throat.   “Now that you are awake, I think she can visit.” Choi added. 

“Please.” Will’s eyes pleaded. 

“I’m gonna let people know you’re up.” Choi said giving a small touch on Will’s shoulder and leaving the room. 

And again he was alone in the room, the quiet was almost blowing his brains out. The room was getting darker and darker, the walls losing its colour and becoming the cell he was being kept. He closed his eyes, trying to even his breathing but the deafening sound of the heart monitor didn’t let him. 


	18. Hello again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter is basically what happened while Will was being held captive. Hope you enjoy it!

It’s been a month. Everything that was built between Will and Bella were destroyed. Jay had moved into Will’s house, trying not to disturb the girl’s routine even more, but he couldn’t help but feel like a stranger in the house. He loved the girl, but every passing she would talk to him less and less at the same time her grades in school started decreasing. He decided in week two to take her to the psychiatrist, but up to now he still haven’t seen any changes in her behavior. 

There were always a sad look on her face and everyday that he would pick her up from school she would ask about Will and each time he told her, “ _ We’re working on it”,  _ without any actual leads his heart would shatter watching her sad face. He would hug her and tell that he would find Will alive and bring him home, but after a few weeks she stopped asking and just sat in silence on the car. 

“We can’t give up hope, okay?” He sat down by her side on the bed, when her mom’s friend called him to give him her condolences, because Bella had told her friends that her father had died. 

That was the first time he actually saw her crying, saw she grieving and it tore him to pieces how little he could do in that situation. Nothing but Will would make this fine. 

When completed a month of Will’s kidnapping, Jay snapped at the whole intelligence once they started to investigate and dedicate themselves to another cases. 

“My brother is missing! It’s been a month! A month! He has a daughter that needs him, he has a family. How come we can help strangers, we can find strangers in a week and someone from our family, that is our friend we can’t?” He shouted once Kim started to explain another case. 

It took everyone by surprise. They all look at him with wide eyes as he breathed hard, no one knew what to say or how to help, so Jay just dismissed himself that day, grabbing his coat and not looking back, only return to apologize a day after, the moment where Vought gave him a few days off and assured him that Will’s case was still his priority. 

Being home made him work by himself. He started to follow leads on the Burkes, some not by legal means. ‘Til he came home late one night to find Bella almost having a panic attack ‘cause she was alone in the house for a few hours. He apologized ‘til he couldn’t anymore as she told him “ _ I thought you were gone too.”  _

Voight called him after 6 weeks, telling him that they had found Will. Jay gathered his gear and went back to work, getting into the car with Hailey as she drove to a simple house a few blocks away from the precinct. It made his blood boil with anger how close Will was this whole time and they couldn't find him,  like this was some kind of a sick prank played on them. 

They got out of the car, burst the door and shot two guys that were aiming guns at them. They searched the place ‘til Jay found the last door in the hallway, there were a rectangular hole in it, big enough for passing a plate and no light coming from it. Pulling his ears close to the door he could hear a small voice singing something. His heart skipped a beat as he asked for Will’s name. Once the door opened and he found his brother, relief, happiness and everything he could feel in the moment crashed into him like waves. 

Will was loaded into an ambulance and taken to med, Jay followed close behind, fearing to leave his side. He couldn’t wait ‘til he picked Bella from the school and finally see the happy look on her face. 

Once they arrived at Med and Choi told him that Will was going to be taken upstairs as they waited for the results of theirs tests on him, Jay nodded and ran out of the hospital. Not caring if it was only 11 a.m., he called the principal and told her that Bella needed to go home. 

He saw as the principal call her name and how the whole class stood in silence as Bella got up and made her way through the door. Jay smiled at her, got on his knees and said: 

“We found Will. We found your dad.” 

Bella looked at him wide eyed. Her face became white and her eyes were tearing up a little. 

“Really?” 

Jay nodded and the girl threw herself into his arms, hugging him as hard as she could. 

“Am I not an orphan?” She said pressing her face in his shoulders. 

“No, no. Will is alive, just a little hurt, but he is fine.” 

He walked through the school’s door with Isabella running by his side, a new kind of excitement and life radiating from her. He swore he never saw her happier and for the first time in a long time, he felt like he could breathe again. 

It was all gone once they arrived at Med and Choi told him that Will was it ill and in a delicate state and it was not recommended for Bella to see Will now, they didn’t know the extent of his trauma and as his immune system was compromised, they would only put Isabella and Will at risk. 

Jay just couldn’t believe it, so he started to yell at Choi in the middle of the hallway. 

“No! Do something! Put her on a mask or something, but she’s going to see her father.” He yelled, but Choi didn’t even flinch. “Ethan, she thought he was dead, please just let her see him…” His voice was softer and almost pleading now. 

Ethan looked at Isabella standing a few feet away from Jay. Tears were streaming down her face and her eyes almost matched the red of her hair, she came closer and held Jay’s hand looking at Choi. 

“My father is not dead is he?” She asked in a voice so small Ethan could barely hear. 

He looked at Jay one more time and sighed. 

“You gonna need to wear a mask and you can’t not stay too close, okay? Your dad is really skinny right now and he might wake up and be a little confused and it can be a little scary. You understand that?” 

She nodded at Choi. And he started to walk, Jay following close behind. 

“Just remember Will is going to be fine. He may not look like that right now, but he will. Remember that.”

Once the door opened, they saw Will sleeping on the bed. A tube coming from his nose, a few IVs on both of his arms, monitors all around him and if Jay didn’t know better he would’ve thought his brother was dead. 

Isabella hid herself behind his legs and Jay hugged her assuring her everything was fine. Her eyes were fixed on Will and she let out a small “dad?” come out. After the shock passed, they sat on the seat watching Will’s chest rise and fall. 

After a few moments Will’s started to move and Jay and Bella almost couldn’t contain their enthusiasm, but soon it faded, as the heart monitor started to announce that Will’s heart rate was getting higher and he started to whisper things like “let me out, let me out, let me out.” 

Jay called the nurse and she politely asked for them to leave and Maggie forbidden Isabella to walk into the room again ‘til Will was lucid enough. 

“My mom had cancer! She died in front of me. I can handle it. I was there every step of the way! Why can’t I do that with my father? Maybe he wants me by his side now!” Isabella yelled at Maggie, what took Jay and Maggie herself by surprise. The girl was always polite and never talked back. 

“You have to understand that this is a different situation. I promise you once he’s better you’re going to see him.” Maggie tried to speak as calm as she could. 

“No! I hate you!” Isabella yelled and crossed her arms. Jay took her hands and they left the hospital. Once they got into the car, Isabella cried her eyes out one more time and told him over and over again “ _ I want my dad, uncle Jay. I’m sorry. I just want my dad.”  _

He held her ‘til she cried herself to sleep. 

It was a week ago, now, Isabella was in her jeans, Wonder Woman T-shirt, her hair in a ponytail, standing on the other side of  a glass door, breathing heavy as Jay held and hand. When Will woke up and his eyes found’s Isabella, there was a warm feeling on her chest and when Will gave her the biggest smile he had, she felt like she would burst out of happiness.


	19. Endings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is probably the last chapter from this work, I don't really know what to do from now on and I feel like this is a good way for ending this story. Thank for anyone that read it 'til now, it was so much fun for me to write it and I hope you all had enjoyed it.   
> Thank you so much.

 

The glass door barely slid open and Isabella let go of Jay’s hands and ran towards the bed Will was in. She didn’t notice that he was skinnier, that were wires and IVs in his arms, she ran as fast as she could trying to close the distance between them as fast as possible, throwing herself into him as he waited for her with arms open. 

When her body crashed into his, Will felt like his whole chest was in pain and a gasp escaped his lips as he fell into the bed holding his daughter in his arms, and everything after that was secondary. So he buried his head in her hair, smelling the lavender smell of it and feeling the texture of her shirt, feeling the way her chest filled in and out with air as her voice filled his ears. 

“I missed you. I missed you.” She kept repeating it as she held onto him like he was the last lifeboat in the middle of the ocean. For the first time they both felt like they were able to breathe correctly, even though the tears that were escaping their eyes were making it faster than it should. 

After a minute or so, Will broke the embrace, holding her face into his hands, trying to memorise every single detail of it just in case something like that happened again. He captured in his mind her pale face, her freckles, red eyes from crying as her eyelashes were wet from tears that were still falling. 

“You have no idea how much I missed you.” Will told her and she nodded. “You don’t know how much I love you, ok? You’re the best thing in my life. The best thing that ever happened to me.” She nodded one more time as he spoke in an assertive tone to her. 

She held on to him again, this time hugging his torso and she made herself comfortable in the bed. 

“Are you hurt?” She asked in a small voice, not facing him yet. 

He looked down at her and he wasn’t surprised when he noticed that he couldn’t see her face, only red hair coming out of what once was a ponytail. 

“No.” He spoke weaker than he intended to. “I’m fine. In a few days they gonna send me home.” 

He felt her nod in his chest. 

“What about you?” He asked. “Are you fine?” 

There were no answer for that. He just felt her breathing getting faster as she was crying, what she was probably doing. 

For the first he looked around the room and noticed that Jay was nowhere to be found, for a moment he was glad that he was having this moment alone, but he cursed under his breath as he realized that he would need to comfort the girl by himself. 

“Hey. Look at me. Look at me” He insisted ‘til her blue eyes were meeting his chocolate own. “I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.” 

It took her a moment to gather her thoughts. 

“I thought about stars everyday. How you were away but always there, but it wasn’t the same, ‘cause you weren’t dead like mom, you were just away…” She looked embarrassed for a moment. “I thought you were dead.” 

Will held her as tight as he could. 

“I looked at the stars thinking about you every single night.” He gave her a small smile. 

“It sucked without you.” She said with a hint of anger that Will didn’t miss but the way she said it made him laugh a little. 

“You spend way too much time with Jay. You are speaking like him.”

“I used to imagine my dad.” Will sensed the mood in the room, noticed how her voice was shaking and trying to be serious, so he just got quiet and waited for her to finish. “Think about what I would give to you in Father’s day, think about coming home with a good grade and then you saying that you’re proud of me. Treating me about boys. Teaching me drive and how to drink. It was all in my head. When I met you I thought that I would do it all to you, but I woke up and you were gone.” 

It cut through Will’s heart how old and tired she sounded. It took him a moment to get over everything and swallow the lump in his throat. 

“I’m here and we are going to do all those things. Everything and a little more. I’m here and I’m not going anywhere.” 

They held each other until they eventually fell asleep on the hospital bed. 

Will woke up first, feeling strange the weight on his chest and seeing Bella with her arms across his chest, small snores coming out of her mouth. He looked around the room and saw Jay sitting on a chair next to his bed, phone in his hand not paying Will any attention. 

“Jay! Jay!” He whispered trying not to wake up Bella. 

“Hey, man!” Jay jumped out of the chair and made his way towards the bed. “She is really passed out right?” 

“Yeah...How long since she had a good night of sleep?” 

“Ever since you went missing to be honest. As a substitute dad I’m a great uncle.” Jay said, his tone made it sound like a joke, but Will could sense how much he struggled about it all. 

“Thank you. For everything.” Will spoke as strong as he could without waking up his daughter.

 “You wouldn’t be at risk if not for me. I pushed you to be a C.I and I’m sorry.” 

“We’re good. We gonna be fine.” 

At that Jay put a hand on Will’s shoulder and Isabella’s eyes opened and she stared at them. 

“I thought I was dreaming.” She said looking at Will and then at Jay. 

“Everything is gonna be fine, right?” Will stared at her now. 

“Of course.” She told him with a smile. 

And Will believed that when a warm feeling started to spread across his chest and he felt as happiness was taking over him.


End file.
